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THOMAS    KIRBY    DAVIS 


THE  DAVIS  FAMILY 


A    HISTORY   OF    THE   DESCENDANTS 

OF    WILLIAM   DAVIS    AND   HIS 

WIFE,    MARY   MEANS 


BY 


v/ 


THOMAS   KIRBY  DAVIS 


OF   WOOSTER,    OHIO 


When  to  the  sessions  of  sweet  silent  thought 
I  summon  up  remembrance  of  things  past, 
I  sigh  the  lack  of  many  a  thing  I  sought. 

Shakespeake,  30th  Sonnet 


IMPRrNTED   FOR   THE   FAMILY 
BY 

THE    PLIMPTON    PRESS 

NORWOOD,   MASSACHUSETTS 


FOREWORD 

THE  privilege  of  expressing  a  word  of  thanks  to  our 
distinguished  kinsman.  Dr.  Thomas  K.  Davis,  for 
his  patient  and  arduous  labors  in  the  preparation  of  this 
family  history,  is  mine  only  by  right  of  seizure,  not 
because  I  am  qualified  to  adequately  voice  the  gratitude 
of  the  large  connection,  most  of  whose  names  I  would  not 
have  known  without  Dr.  Davis'  labor  of  love.  I  am  sure 
we  are  all  united  in  appreciation  of  the  magnitude  and 
the  value  of  the  task  which  he  ha^  so  successfully  accom- 
plished. If  any  of  our  attainments  fail  to  appear  under 
our  respective  names  it  is  not  because  we  were  not  given 
frequent  opportunities  to  supply  them;  and  judging  from 
the  tardiness  of  the  responses  among  some  of  my  own 
family  and  the  forbearance  of  Dr.  Davis,  I  should  say 
that  patience  is  one  of  his  most  striking  characteristics. 
I  know  of  no  one  who  in  his  search  for  information 
followed  more  consistently  the  old  adage,  "If  at  first  you 
donH  succeed,  try,  try  again.''  To  his  patience  he  added 
unfailing  courtesy  and  unremitting  industry,  and  these 
have  brought  the  book  to  a  successful  close  —  though  a 
family  history  is  one  of  the  things  which  can  never  be  said 
to  be  finished. 

The  inspiration  of  knowing  Dr.  Davis  personally  has 
come  to  some  of  us  since  he  began  the  preparation  of 
this  book,  and  he  seems  to  us  to  be,  like  Dorothy  Words- 
worth, "over  eighty  summers  young,  without  a  single 
winter  in  his  heart."  Life  is  still  full  of  interest  and  joy 
for  him,  and  he  has  the  rare  gift  of  imparting  his  enthu- 


iv  FOREWORD 

siasm  to  others.  His  physical  and  intellectual  powers 
are  remarkable  —  and  second  only  to  his  spirituality, 
which  shines  through  all  that  he  does  and  says.  His 
humor  and  sympathy  make  him  the  most  delightful  of 
companions,  and  we  hope  he  may  long  be  spared  to  honor 
the  Davis  family  by  his  noble  life. 

This  inadequate  tribute  to  Dr.  Davis  has  been  prepared 
and  inserted  with  the  co-operation  of  several  members  of  the 
family,  without  his  knowledge,  and  since  the  MSS.  left  his 
hands.  I  must  ask  his  forgiveness  for  the  liberty  I  have 
taken.  My  justification  will  come  not  only  from  the  many 
now  living  who  will  enjoy  the  fruits  of  his  labors,  but  from 
the  generations  still  to  come,  who  may  use  this  book  as  a 
guide  to  further  study  of  the  Davis  family  history. 

E.  B.  C. 

June,  1912 


PREFACE 

THE  compilation  of  these  records  has  been  to  me  a  great 
source  of  pleasure  and  a  labor  of  love.  When  I 
began  gathering  the  items,  more  than  twelve  years  ago, 
I  had  no  thought  of  making  them  complete  or  of  pub- 
lishing them.  It  was  for  my  own  gratification  and  that 
of  my  children.  I  had  not  proceeded  far  until  I  became 
interested,  and  I  saw  that  all  the  friends  to  whom  I 
applied  for  information  seemed  to  take  it  for  granted  that 
I  would  publish  what  records  I  could  gather.  This  led 
me  to  think  of  issuing  a  pamphlet  containing  merely  the 
statistics  of  as  many  families  as  I  could  reach;  but  as 
letters,  obituary  sketches,  and  newspaper  clippings  were 
placed  at  my  disposal,  the  idea  of  a  bound  volume  gradu- 
ally grew  upon  me.  And  I  thought  the  more  of  it  for 
another  reason.  I  was  much  struck  by  the  noble  char- 
acter and  real  piety  of  our  common  ancestors,  William 
Davis  and  Mary  Means,  and  the  number  of  earnest 
Christians  of  different  denominations  among  their  de- 
scendants led  me  to  think  of  the  covenant  which  God 
graciously  makes  with  believers  in  Christ  and  their 
children,  and  of  how  remarkably  it  seems  to  be  exempli- 
fied in  the  case  of  our  honored  ancestors.  This  thought 
led  to  another.  Reading  the  record  of  our  ancestry, 
consecrated  to  God's  service,  and  of  their  children  for 
several  generations  following  in  their  steps,  might  be  of 
great  benefit  to  our  children,  and  to  theirs  after  them, 
and  have  a  real  and  powerful  influence  for  good  upon  their 
characters  and  lives. 

For  what  Daniel  Webster  once  said  is  most  true:  "It 


vi  PREFACE 

is  a  noble  faculty  of  our  nature  which  enables  us  to  con- 
nect our  thoughts,  sympathies,  and  happiness  with  what 
is  distant  in  place  or  time,  and  looking  before  and  after 
to  hold  communion  at  once  with  our  ancestors  and  our 
posterity.  There  is  a  moral  and  philosophical  respect 
for  om*  ancestors  which  elevates  the  character  and  im- 
proves the  heart.  Next  to  the  sense  of  religious  duty  and 
moral  feeling  I  hardly  know  what  should  bear  with 
stronger  obligation  on  a  liberal  and  enlightened  mind 
than  a  consciousness  of  an  alliance  with  excellence  which 
is  departed,  and  a  consciousness,  too,  that  in  its  acts  and 
conduct,  and  even  in  its  sentiments  and  thoughts,  it  may 
be  actively  operating  on  the  happiness  of  others  that  come 
after  it." 

This  simply  means  that  "a  Family  Record,  whether 
written  or  traditional,  is  of  great  value,  and  has  great 
power  in  molding  the  character  and  influencing  the 
actions  of  men."  For  as  a  rule  good  and  worthy  parents 
produce  good  and  worthy  sons  and  daughters.  The  son 
who  is  reared  in  the  belief  that  his  ancestors  were  gentle, 
brave,  and  manly,  is  not  likely  to  stoop  to  dishonorable 
deeds.  "If,  as  Seneca  said,  *  Virtue  is  the  only  nobility,' 
he  is  doubly  a  nobleman  who  is  not  only  descended  from 
a  virtuous  ancestry,  but  is  himself  virtuous."  And 
Tennyson  has  expressed  the  same  sentiment  in  purest 
English. 

"How  e'er  it  be,  it  seems  to  me, 
'Tis  only  noble  to  be  good; 
Kind  hearts  are  more  than  coronets. 
And  simple  faith  than  Norman  blood." 

Since  writing  the  above  I  have  found  my  thought 
so  well  expressed  in  that  charming  book,  "The  Life  of 
Alice  Freeman  Palmer,"  that  I  must  quote  it:  "No  one 
of  us  starts  as  an  individual,  or  can  ever  after  become 
such,  being  essentially  social,  a  member  merely,  a  part  of 
a  larger  whole.     It  is  therefore  of  extreme  consequence, 


PREFACE  .  vii 

if  our  life  is  to  be  a  fortunate  one,  that  the  family  of  which 
we  are  portions  shall  be  noble  and  have  a  high  descent. 
That  was  the  case  with  Alice  Freeman;  for  though  on 
both  sides,  so  far  as  I  am  aware,  few  of  her  ancestors 
figured  in  the  newspapers,  or  had  any  considerable  share 
of  wealth  or  learning,  they  were  of  that  sturdy  stock 
which  has  been  the  glory  of  America  —  men  and  women 
who  in  quiet  homes  pride  themselves  on  duty  and  intelli- 
gence, who  think  about  each  day's  work  and  carefully 
accomplish  it;  people  on  whom  neighbors  can  rely,  and 
who  are  willing  to  be  overlooked  in  the  public  interest." 
That  high  honor  and  supreme  advantage  belong  to  the 
now  living  descendants  of  William  and  Mary  Means 
Davis. 

Let  us  be  grateful  to  Heaven,  then,  for  giving  us  a 
noble  ancestry  —  men  and  women  who  were  moral  and 
religious,  industrious  and  honest,  lovers  of  their  country 
and  of  their  fellow-men,  excellent  specimens  of  the 
people  who  made  America  free,  and  were  terribly  aroused 
and  did  their  part  in  the  memorable  struggle  to  preserve 
the  Union  in  the  dark  days  of  the  Civil  War.  As  our 
forebears  helped  to  make  America  free,  and  others  of  our 
kin  helped  to  keep  her  united,  may  their  children  and 
children's  children  help  to  make  our  country  still  greater 
and  stronger  than  ever,  through  the  triumph  of  sound 
morals,  civic  righteousness,  and  pure  Christianity. 

"All  that  past  times  have  given  us 

May  we  employ  aright. 
And  live  a  grand  and  godly  life. 

Full  worthy  of  our  light. 
We  follow  in  the  awful  march 

Of  all  the  mighty  dead. 
Eternal  Father,  succor  us 

When  all  our  years  have  fled." 

It  may  be  interesting  to  note  that  among  the  descend- 
ants of  William  and  Mary  Davis,  about  forty  have  been 


viii  PREFACE 

college  graduates,  fully  as  many  have  been  soldiers  in  the 
service  of  their  country,  seven  have  been  ministers  of  the 
Gospel,  a  score  at  least  have  been  Presbyterian  elders, 
and  many  have  been  officials  in  other  churches,  mostly 
in  the  Protestant  Episcopal  and  Methodist  Episcopal 
Churches.  Eight  at  least  have  held  some  office  in  the 
state,  but  I  think  that  not  one  half  tlie  cases  of  those 
holding  minor  offices  in  the  church  or  state  have  been 
reported. 

I  would  be  ungrateful  not  to  mention  here  that,  while 
nearly  all  to  whom  I  have  written  for  information  have 
been  most  cordial  and  helpful,  I  am  specially  indebted 
to  Mrs.  Dr.  Cotton,  of  Germantown,  Pa.,  Mrs.  Eliza  H. 
Gordon,  of  Wilkinsburg,  Pa.,  and  Mrs.  Belle  Hassler 
Welty,  of  Meadville,  Pa.,  for  their  indefatigable  efforts 
to  assist  me  in  disentangling  the  knotty  threads  of  kin- 
ship, and  in  deciding  "Who was  Who"  among  the  Jameses, 
the  Marys,  the  Samuels,  etc.,  who  turned  up  in  the  course 
of  our  researches.  And  I  wish  to  express  my  sense  of 
obligation  and  my  gratitude  to  Mr.  Henry  L.  Davis,  of 
Germantown,  Pa.,  without  whose  sympathetic  encourage- 
ment and  generous  pecuniary  assistance  the  publication 
of  the  volume  could  scarcely  have  been  possible. 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

HISTORICAL  INTRODUCTION 1 

JAMES  THE  FIRST 6 

WILLIAM  AND  MARY 10 

I.     Joseph 21 

II.     James 31 

in.     William 89 

IV.     John 145 

V.     Patrick 183 

VI.     Henry 205 

VII.     Samuel 223 

INDEX 241 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

Rev.  Thomas  Kirby  Davis,  D.D Frontispiece 

Old  House  Standing  on  Site  of  James  Davis'  Home Facing  page  7 

Side  View  of  Old  Presbyterian  Church  at  Deep  Run 11 

Red  Hill  Presbyterian  Church 12 

Rocky  Spring  Presbyterian  Church  (Near  Chambersburg) 13 

Thomas  Davis  (Son  of  Joseph) 22 

James  Davas  (Son  of  James) 33 

William  Davns,  Jr 34 

Mrs.  William  Davis,  Jr 35 

James  J.  Davis 37 

Mrs.  James  J.  Davis 37 

J.  C.  Cotton,  M.D 37 

Mrs.  Mary  D.  Cotton 37 

James  P.  Hassler,  M.D 45 

Mrs.  James  P.  Hassler 45 

William  W.  Davis 45 

Mrs.  William  W.  Davis 45 

Mrs.  Henry  L.  Davis  * 51 

Mrs.  Henry  L.  Davis  ^ 51 


X  THE  DAVIS  FAMILY. 

Emma  E.  Davis 51 

Henry  L.  Davis 51 

Hem-y  L.  Davis,  Jr 53 

Mrs.  Hem-y  L.  Davis,  Jr 53 

Hem-y  C.  Davis  {Brother  of  William,  Jr.) 60 

James  Davis  Haymaker 71 

Mrs.  James  Davis  Haymaker 72 

William  Stewart  Davis 90 

Mrs.  A.  H.  Senseny 94 

William  Stewart  Davis 94 

A.  H.  Senseny,  M.D 94 

William  V.  Davis 94 

Mrs.  Thomas  Kirby  Davis 110 

Dr.  James  Wallace 116 

Rev.  John  M.  Davies 117 

Rev.  John  P.  Davis 119 

Robert  S.  Davis 122 

Robert  Davis 128 

Rev.  P.  M.  Semple 130 

Rev.  W.  M.  Pocock,  D.D 131 

Rev.  Homer  B.  Henderson 132 

Rev.  A.  S.  MilhoUand,  D.D 135 

Mrs.  John  M.  McFaden 148 

John  M.  McFaden 149 

Mrs.  Henry  John  Bailey 153 

Henry  John  Bailey 154 

Mrs.  Bailey  and  Group  of  thirty  around  her 158 

Mrs.  Jemima  Davis  Powell 197 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Justus  W.  Davis 220 

J.  Haymaker  Davis  (Son  of  Samuel) 226 

George  Stewart  Davis  (Son  of  Haymaker) 226 

William  Davis  (Son  of  Samuel) 226 

Frank  K.  Davis  (Son  of  William) 226 

John  Davis  (Son  of  Samuel) 235 


THE  DAVIS  FAMILY 


HISTORICAL  INTRODUCTION 

OUR  common  ancestor,  Samuel  Davis,  was  born 
near  Drumquin,  in  County  Tyrone,  Ireland,  in  the 
year  1669,  and  died  at  his  son  James's  in  Tinicum,  Bucks 
County,  Pa.,  in  1758,  being  89  years  of  age.  His  wife, 
Margaret  Stewart,  was  born  in  1676,  and  died  in  1756, 
when  80  years  old. 

Their  son,  James  Davis,  was  born  near  Drumquin, 
March  1,  1699.  He  married  Eliza  Jennings  January 
3,  1729.  They  emigrated  to  America  in  1735,  and  thus 
James  Davis  became  the  head  and  founder  of  our  family 
in  this  country. 

Tyrone  County,  in  the  Province  of  Ulster,  is  famous  in 
Irish  history.  It  was  the  scene  of  the  great  "Tyrone 
Rebellion"  which  broke  out  in  1597,  in  the  days  of 
Queen  Elizabeth,  under  the  leadership  of  Hugh  O'Neill, 
Earl  of  Tyrone.  This  rebellion  was  prolonged  for  a 
number  of  years,  but  it  was  finally  subdued  under  the 
leadership  of  Lord  Mountjoy. 

During  this  period  were  erected  many  of  the  castles, 
the  ruins  of  which  remain  to  this  day,  monumental 
records  of  this  stirring  episode  in  the  history  of  Ireland. 
These  ruins  add  much  to  the  picturesque  character  of 
the  fine  scenery  of  Tyrone.  A  famous  one  is  Castle 
Caulfield,  built  by  Sir  Toby  Caulfield,  afterwards  Lord 
Charlemont. 

Soon  after  his  accession  to  the  English  throne,  King 
James  the  First,  having  secured  the  flight  and  outlawry 
of  the  Earls  of  Tyrone  and  Tyrconnel,  seized  upon  their 
vast  estates  in  the  fertile  Province  of  Ulster.     Upon  this 


2  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

territory  he  commenced  planting  a  colony  of  Scotch  and 
English  people  in  the  year  1609.  In  history  this  is 
known  as  the  *'  Plantation  of  Ulster."  Scotch-Irish  is  the 
name  commonly  given  to  these  British  settlers  in  Ulster. 
The  colonists  were  mostly  from  Scotland.  Some  were 
from  England,  and  some,  I  suppose,  from  Wales.  For 
our  ancestral  name  is  Welsh.  As  Edwards,  Johns, 
Richards,  etc.,  are  Welsh  family  names  from  Edward, 
John,  Richard,  etc.,  so  Davids  is  a  Welsh  family  name 
from  David.  And  Davis  is,  for  the  sake  of  euphony, 
an  abbreviation  of  Davids.  Davies  is  only  another  form 
of  Davis.  David,  a  Bible  name,  meaning  the  beloved, 
is  a  fine  family  name.  With  the  superstitious,  St.  David 
is  the  patron  saint  of  Wales,  as  St.  George  is  of  England, 
St.  Patrick  of  Ireland,  and  St.  Andrew  of  Scotland. 

It  was  not  long  before  Ulster,  with  its  fertile  soil  and 
intelligent  Protestant  population,  was  transformed  from 
a  waste  desolate  region  into  one  of  great  beauty  and 
prosperity.  It  became  one  of  the  most  attractive  spots 
in  Europe.  This  state  of  things  continued  until  about 
1633,  when  repression  and  oppression  began.  Charles 
the  First  was  king.  The  Earl  of  Strafford  and 
Archbishop  Laud  were  the  instruments  through  whom 
oppression  in  the  state  and  in  the  church  was  brought 
about.  They  were  kindred  spirits.  The  former  wished 
the  king  to  have  absolute  power,  and  labored  with  all 
his  might  to  secure  it  for  him.  The  latter  was  devoted 
to  a  religion  of  rites  and  ceremonies,  and  he  labored  with 
a  furious  zeal  to  abolish  dissent  and  secure  conformity. 
From  that  time  on  the  Ulster  men  were  trained 
through  trials  and  sufferings,  for  some  great  work.  In 
1641  the  Civil  War,  then  prevailing  in  England,  supplied 
the  Irish  Romanists  with  a  favorable  opportunity  for 
throwing  off  the  English  yoke,  and  getting  rid  of  the 
new  religion.  In  that  year  an  insurrection  broke  out  in 
Ulster  which  soon  spread  to  all  parts  of  the  Island.     No 


mSTORICAL   INTRODUCTION  3 

fewer  than  forty  thousand  Protestants  perished  in  Ulster, 
and  anarchy  prevailed  in  Ireland  until  1649,  when  Crom- 
well appeared  on  the  scene,  and  order  was  restored. 

At  the  time  of  the  Revolution  of  1688,  when  King 
James  II  was  banished  from  England,  and  better  times 
came  under  William  and  Mary,  the  troubles  of  our  fore- 
fathers in  Ulster  increased.  The  banished  king  took 
refuge  in  Ireland,  and  gathering  an  army  of  his  co-religion- 
ists endeavored  to  re-establish  himself.  It  was  then  in 
1689  that  one  of  the  most  extraordinary  events  in  the 
history  of  Ireland  occurred  —  the  siege  of  Derry,  or 
Londonderry  as  it  is  now  called,  when  a  few  thousand 
Protestants  defended  themselves  for  months  against  the 
besieging  army  of  James.  Military  men  pronounced  it 
an  impossibility  to  hold  a  place  so  weakly  fortified  as 
was  Derry,  against  a  far  superior  force.  But  the  spirit 
of  the  Ulster  men  was  equal  to  the  occasion,  and,  after 
unparalleled  sufferings  and  losses  from  starvation  and  pes- 
tilence, they  were  finally  relieved  by  the  arrival  of  provi- 
sions from  England,  when  the  enemy  abandoned  the  siege. 

I  have  not  a  doubt  that  our  common  ancestor,  Samuel 
Davis,  and  others  of  the  family  to  which  he  belonged, 
were  with  that  noble  band.  For  Drumquin  was  not 
far  from  Derry,  and  when  the  Earl  of  Antrim  and 
his  troops  appeared  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river 
Foyle,  and  demanded  the  surrender  of  the  city,  mes- 
sengers were  sent  out,  under  cover  of  the  night,  to  the 
Protestants  of  the  neighboring  counties,  who  promptly 
obeyed  the  summons.  Within  forty-eight  hours  hundreds 
of  horse  and  foot  came  on  the  various  roads  leading  to 
the  city.  Samuel  Davis  was  then  twenty  years  of  age, 
and  that  he  responded  to  the  call  and  was  imbued  with  the 
heroic  spirit  of  the  defenders  of  Derry,  I  infer  from  the 
fact  that  his  son  James,  after  his  migration  to  Pennsyl- 
vania, exhibited  so  much  of  the  military  spirit  that  he  and 
his  two  oldest  sons  were  officers  in  the  continental  army 


4  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

during  the  French  and  Indian  War.  Every  young  per- 
son in  our  families  should  read  an  account  of  the  siege 
of  Derry,  to  know  of  what  sort  of  stuff  Scotch-Irish  people 
are  made. 

Soon  after  the  accession  of  William  and  Mary,  the 
English  Parliament  passed  stringent  laws  for  the  repress- 
ing of  manufactures  in  Ireland.  Manufacturing  indus- 
tries had  become  very  prosperous  in  Ulster,  to  which  the 
Huguenot  element  of  the  population  had  largely  contrib- 
uted. The  result  was  that  a  hundred  thousand  operatives 
were  driven  out  of  Ireland.  It  was  estimated  that  three 
thousand  men  alone  left  Ulster  annually  for  America. 
These  Ulster  exiles  were  nearly  all  Protestants,  and  mostly 
Presbyterians. 

One  of  their  earliest  settlements  in  America  was  made 
in  Pennsylvania  in  1699.  From  that  time  on  a  steady 
stream  of  emigrants  flowed  into  Pennsylvania,  Virginia, 
and  the  Carolinas.  Some  of  them  also  found  their  way 
into  New  England.  This  accounts  for  the  fact  that  from 
an  early  day  some  Presbyterian  churches  have  existed 
in  New  Hampshire  and  northeastern  Massachusetts. 
It  was  not  merely  the  operatives  in  factories  who  were 
driven  out  of  fair  Ulster  by  a  government  that  was  acting 
absurdly,  as  well  as  with  cruelty,  but  the  farming  popu- 
lation, who  had  turned  Ulster  from  a  desert  into  a  garden 
spot,  were  also  discouraged  and  driven  out.  Our  ances- 
tors were  tillers  of  the  soil,  and  religious  folk,  and  the 
restrictions  to  which  they  were  subject  in  their  dissenting 
churches  were  among  the  chief  reasons  for  their  leaving 
Ireland. 

The  first  Ulster  emigrants  settled  in  Chester,  Phila- 
delphia, and  Bucks  Counties  —  the  only  ones  then  or- 
ganized in  Pennsylvania.  Many  who  first  settled  there 
afterwards  moved  south  into  Delaware,  Maryland,  Vir- 
ginia, Kentucky,  and  other  states,  and  constituted  a  large 
and  important  element  of  the  population  in  preparing  for 


HISTORICAL    INTRODUCTION  5 

and  in  carrying  through  the  great  struggle  for  inde- 
pendence. It  thus  became  apparent  for  what  the  Lord 
had  been  preparing  the  composite  population  of  Ulster 
in  the  school  of  persecution  and  trial.  Mr,  Bancroft,  the 
historian,  says,  "The  first  public  voice  in  America  for 
dissolving  all  connexion  with  Great  Britain  came,  not 
from  the  Puritans  of  New  England,  the  Dutch  of  New 
York,  nor  the  planters  of  Virginia,  but  from  the  Scotch- 
Irish  Presbyterians."  Every  one  knows  that  the  first 
Declaration  of  Independence  was  made  in  1775  by  a 
convention  of  Scotch-Irishmen  in  Mecklenburg,  North 
Carolina;  it  is  not  so  generally  known  that  the  second 
came  from  a  convention  of  Presbyterians  held  at  Carlisle, 
Pa.,  in  the  same  year.  They  were  the  back-bone  of  the 
colonists  in  the  dark  days  of  the  Revolutionary  War. 
Washington's  generals  were  nearly  all  of  that  staunch 
and  sturdy  race.  Their  political,  social,  and  religious 
influence,  since  the  organization  of  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment, has  been  proportionate  to  their  numerical  strength. 
The  Presbyterian  Church  owes  its  origin  on  this  continent 
to  the  incoming  of  the  Scotch-Irish,  and  its  growth  and 
influence  to  their  increase.  Many  of  the  leading  Presby- 
terians of  the  country,  such  as  the  Alexanders  and  the 
Wishards,  trace  their  family  history  back  to  the  hills  and 
vales  of  County  Tyrone.  Of  course,  the  Scotch-Irish  are 
not  all  to  be  found  in  the  Presbyterian  Church  to-day. 
Nearly  every  Protestant  denomination  finds  much  of  its, 
strength  in  its  ministers  and  members  who  belong  to  that 
sturdy  and  well-seasoned  race.  Senator  Hoar,  who,  like 
Bancroft,  did  not  belong  to  us  at  all,  speaking  of  the 
Scotch-Irish,  said:  "There  never  was  a  better  stock.  Our 
country  has  owed  much  to  the  intelligence,  the  energy, 
and  the  steadfastness  of  this  admirable  race."  From 
all  this  I  hope  our  boys  and  girls  will  see  how  much  and 
how  great  things  will  be  expected  from  them,  both  in 
the  church  and  in  the  state. 


6  THE   DAVIS   F.\MILY 

In  looking  into  the  history  of  County  Tyrone,  I  met 
with  a  narrative  which  interested  me  very  much  and  which 
I  hope  will  interest  others,  because  it  relates  to  a  matter 
of  living  interest. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  C.  S.  Hall,  celebrated  travelers  and 
writers  of  the  last  century,  were  greatly  delighted  when 
they  visited  Tyrone  to  find  nestled  amid  the  wild  scenery 
of  that  region  a  factory,  established  by  the  Messrs.  Herd- 
man,  which  employed  seven  hundred  peasants  —  four 
hundred  men  and  three  hundred  women  and  girls.  These 
gentlemen  seem  to  have  been  far  in  advance  of  their  time, 
which  was  prior  to  the  middle  of  the  last  century.  They 
manifested  a  personal  sympathy  with  their  employees 
and  exercised  a  kindly  care  for  them;  which  alas!  is  not 
very  common  even  in  our  day,  and  at  that  time  was  very 
rare.  We  have  some  employers,  like  the  Messrs.  Patter- 
son of  the  National  Cash  Register  Company,  at  Dayton, 
Ohio,  who  take  great  pains  to  make  their  employees  com- 
fortable, and  to  give  them  time  and  opportunities  for  per- 
sonal improvement,  so  that  their  humanity  has  excited 
the  admiration  of  the  entire  country.  But  the  Messrs. 
Herdman  had  as  much  care  for  the  moral  and  religious 
improvement  of  their  people  as  they  had  for  their  physical 
comfort.  They  established  a  Sunday  school  among  them 
the  result  of  which  was,  according  to  the  testimony  of 
the  Halls,  that,  from  being  a  lot  of  idle,  straggling,  starv- 
ing creatures,  they  were  transformed  into  industrious, 
comfortable,  self-respecting,  and  happy  people. 

JAMES    THE    FIRST 

JAMES  DAVIS,  son  of  Samuel,  was  born  near 
Drumquin,  March  1,  1699.  On  January  3,  1729, 
he  married  Eliza  Jennings,  who  was  born  May  3,  1706, 
and  died  in  Tinicum  township,  Bucks  County,  Pa.,  in 
1746.     In  1735  James,  his  wife,  and  two  children,  William 


« 


JAMES   THE   FIRST  7 

and  Patrick,  were  among  the  large  number  of  those  who 
crowded  the  vessels  sailing  to  America  that  year.  So 
great  had  been  the  exodus  from  Ulster  of  the  best  and 
most  desirable  part  of  its  population,  that  the  British 
Government  took  measures,  that  very  year,  to  put  an 
end  to  this  emigration.  Our  ancestor,  however,  suc- 
ceeded in  reaching  America  with  his  little  family.  Set- 
tling in  Pennsylvania,  in  what  later  became  Tinicum 
township,  Bucks  County,  he  purchased  two  hundred 
acres  of  land  upon  which  he  established  a  home,  and 
occupied  the  same  until  his  death  in  1760, ^ 

He  was  a  prominent  and  active  citizen  in  his  com- 
munity. His  name  appears  in  the  County  Records  as 
auditor,  appointed  by  the  Court,  in  the  settlement  of 
difiFerent  estates,  as  a  road  commissioner,  etc.  In  the 
winter  of  1747-1748,  when  the  whole  frontier  was  threat- 
ened with  the  depredations  of  Indians,  "the  inhabitants 
above  the  Tohicon,"  in  common  with  the  people  of  other 
districts,  organized  a  military  company  for  the  defense  of 
the  frontiers.  Its  officers  were  Capt.  James  McLaughlin, 
Lieut.  James  Davis,  and  Ensign  John  Hall,  all  of  Tinicum 
township,  and  all  duly  commissioned. ^  This  company  was 
in  active  service  on  the  frontiers  of  Northampton  County 
as  late  as  1755,  under  the  same  captain  and  lieutenant.^ 

After  coming  to  America  James  and  his  wife  had  four 
other  sons.  Eliza  died  in  1746.  The  lieutenant  married 
a  second  wife,  whose  name  was  Mary.  Her  family  name 
is  not  now  known.  He  was  an  interested  member  of  the 
Presbyterian  Congregation  of  Tinicum,  which  was  organ- 
ized in  1738,  not  long  after  the  Davises  settled  in  the 
neighborhood.  The  graveyard  in  which  the  Tinicum 
people  were  interred  still  remains  in  its  stone- wall 
enclosure.     But  it  is  so  overgrown  with  trees  and  bushes 

1  Pa.  Arch.  Ser.  2.  Vol.  24.  p.  122. 

2  Pa.  Arch.,  Ser.  2,  Vol.  2,  p.  433.     Colon.  Records,  Vol.  5,  p.  247. 
» Pa.  Arch.,  Ser.  28,  Vol.  2,  pp.  443-444. 


8  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

as  to  be  almost  impenetrable.  The  church-building  dis- 
appeared long  ago.  Mr.  Davis  and  his  first  wife  were  no 
doubt  among  the  charter-members  of  this  church.  He 
was,  we  know,  one  of  its  trustees.  The  lieutenant  and 
his  second  wife  had  seven  children  who,  with  their 
mother,  survived  Mr.  Davis,  who  passed  away  on  his  farm 
in  Tinicum  early  in  February,  1760.  The  inventory  of 
his  property,  which  may  be  seen  in  the  Probate  Office  in 
Doylestown,  Pa.,  was  made  February  10,  1760.  Let- 
ters of  administration  of  his  estate  were  granted  to  his 
widow,  Mary  Davis,  and  his  second  son,  Capt.  Patrick 
Davis,  March  10,  1760. 

In  September,  1761,  Capt.  Patrick  Davis  presented  a 
petition  to  the  Orphans'  Court  of  Bucks  County  setting 
forth  that  his  father  died  seized  of  two  hundred  acres  of 
land,  and  that  he  left  thirteen  children;  that  William 
Davis,  the  eldest  son  of  the  said  James  Davis,  deceased, 
was  advanced  by  his  father,  in  his  lifetime,  more  than 
the  double  share  of  the  estate  to  which  he  was  entitled 
as  the  eldest  son,  and  praying  for  a  partition  of  the  real 
estate  of  the  said  James  Davis  to  and  among  his  other 
children,  as  the  law  directed.  Whereupon  a  jury  was 
appointed  to  value  and  divide  the  said  land.  Two  of 
the  jury  were  the  decedent's  old  comrades  in  arms  — 
Capt.  James  McLaughlin  and  John  Hall.  Before  this 
proceeding  was  concluded  Patrick  Davis  died,  and  on 
June  14,  1763,  William,  eldest  son  of  the  said  intestate, 
appeared  in  Court,  and  refused  to  accept  the  real  estate, 
whereupon  it  was  adjudged  to  the  third  son  of  said 
intestate,  viz.,  James  Davis. ^ 

I  have  taken  the  facts  and  references  to  Pennsylvania 
Archives  given  above  from  a  paper  prepared  by  Mr. 
Warren    S.    Ely,   genealogist,    and   Index    Clerk   in   the 

^  Records  and  Files  in  the  OflBce  of  Register  of  Wills  of  Bucks  County  at 
Doylestown,  Pa.,  and  Records  of  Orphans'  Court  of  said  County.  O.  C. 
Record  No.  1,  pp.  265,  286,  293,  294,  309,  316,  352,  411,  etc.,  etc. 


JAMES   THE   FIRST  9 

Orphans'  Court  of  Bucks  County,  and  affirmed  and  sub- 
scribed by  him  before  Charles  F.  Meyers,  Notary  Public 
at  Doylestown,  Pa.,  on  April  28,  1903.  And  I  have  been 
thus  particular  for  the  reason  that  if  any  of  the  descend- 
ants of  Lieut.  James  Davis  desire  to  enter  chapters  of  the 
Colonial  Dames  of  America,  the  facts  above  given  will  be 
sufficient  to  secure  their  admission  to  the  same.  And  the 
same  facts  will  be  helpful  to  those  who  wish  to  enter  chap- 
ters of  the  Sons  or  Daughters  of  the  American  Revolution. 

We  know  the  names  and  order  of  the  children  of  James 
the  First  —  the  father  and  founder  of  our  branch  of  the 
large  Davis  family  in  America.  They  were:  1.  William, 
2.  Patrick,  3.  James,  4.  John,  5.  Samuel,  6.  Joseph, 
7.  Isaac,  8.  Margaret,  9.  Nathaniel,  10.  Robert,  11. 
Mary,  12.  Ann,  13.  Elizabeth  —  the  first  six  boys  the 
children  of  Eliza  Jennings,  a  daughter  of  the  green  isle  of 
Erin,  and  the  other  seven  sons  and  daughters  the  children 
of  Mary,  in  all  probability  from  the  same  lovely  isle,  the 
birth-place  of  witty  and  courageous  sons  and  of  winsome 
and  attractive  daughters. 

It  would  be  very  interesting  to  be  able  to  follow  the 
history,  however  brief,  of  each  of  the  thirteen  children. 
But,  alas !  we  know  nothing  of  the  career  of  any  of  them 
save  the  first  three  —  William,  Patrick,  and  James.  Of 
James  we  know  only  this,  that  he  was  the  first  of  the 
family  born  in  America,  and  that  he  purchased  the  farm 
left  by  his  father,  and  paid  the  widowed  mother  and  his 
brothers  and  sisters  their  several  shares.  Of  the  other 
six  sons  —  John,  Samuel,  Joseph,  Isaac,  Nathaniel,  and 
Robert  —  the  oldest  was  about  thirty-five  and  the 
youngest  eighteen  or  twenty  years  of  age,  when  the 
Revolutionary  War  broke  out.  Without  any  doubt  the 
most,  if  not  all  of  them,  took  part  in  that  desperate 
struggle.  We  can  find  the  names  of  perhaps  all  of  them 
in  the  muster-rolls  of  the  Colonial  forces,  as  preserved  and 
published.    But  it  is  impossible  for  us  to  tell  whether  they 


10  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

are  the  names  of  our  John,  Samuel,  etc.,  or  whether  they 
belong  to  other  branches  of  the  Davis  family.  With  regard 
to  our  ancestor  William  being  in  the  Revolutionary  army 
we  not  only  find  his  name  where  we  would  expect  to  find 
it,  but  we  have  the  family  tradition  to  support  the  claim. 

Patrick  Davis,  the  second  son,  was  commissioned  as 
lieutenant  in  Captain  Thomas  Lloyd's  company,  in  "the 
Augusta  regiment,"  April  4,  1756,  under  Major  James 
Burd.  Major  Burd,  in  his  published  Journal,  makes 
frequent  mention  of  Lieutenant  Davis,  and  the  record 
shows  that  he  was  frequently  detailed  to  take  command 
of  expeditions  to  different  posts  requiring  the  utmost 
discretion  and  daring.  For  his  fidelity  and  bravery  he 
was  promoted  to  the  rank  of  Captain,  December  22,  1757.^ 
Captain  Davis  was  commissioned  Justice  of  the  Peace  in 
1761  for  a  term  of  three  years.  He  was  married  to 
Elizabeth  Williams,  May  11,  1762.  After  serving  in 
his  new  office  a  little  over  one  year,  his  death  occurred 
when  he  was  about  thirty  years  of  age.  The  inventory 
of  his  belongings,  which  is  still  in  existence  in  the  Office 
at  Doylestown,  Pa.,  indicates  that  he  was  prospering  in 
the  world  and  well  able  to  provide  for  a  wife  and  family. 

Capt.  Patrick  Davis  was  a  capable  and  forceful  charac- 
ter; and  had  not  his  career  been  cut  short,  as  we  have 
every  reason  to  believe,  by  his  strenuous  life  and  expo- 
sures in  the  army,  his  history  might  have  furnished  an 
interesting  chapter  in  our  book. 


WILLIAM    AND    MARY 

WILLIAM  DAVIS,  the  eldest  child  of  the  large 
family  of  James  (the  first),  was  born  in  Ireland, 
near  Drumquin,  County  Tyrone,  May  15,  1730.  He  and 
Patrick  were  brought  by  their  parents  to  America  in  the 
year  1735.     He  grew  up  on  the  farm  in  Tinicum,  receiv- 

1  Pa.  Arch.,  Ser.  2,  Vol.  2,  pp.  461,  462,  468,  478,  521,  649.  652,  655,  674. 


WILLIAM   AND    MARY  11 

ing  such  an  education  as  was  attainable  at  that  early 
day,  and  being  carefully  instructed  and  trained,  relig- 
ously  and  morally,  by  intelligent  and  loving  parents.  He 
was  at  the  same  time  acquiring  habits  of  industry,  fru- 
gality, and  thrift  under  their  watchful  care. 

He  inherited  a  patriotic  and  military  spirit,  and  in  1747- 
1748,  when  he  was  not  more  than  eighteen  years  of  age, 
we  find  him  serving  as  ensign  in  the  regiment  commanded 
by  Col.  Alexander  Gray  don.  This  was  during  the  French 
and  Indian  War.^ 

Among  the  Presbyterian  families  of  that  part  of  the 
country  was  that  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  William  Means.  It 
was  a  prominent  family  of  the  Deep  Run  Congregation. 
Their  daughter  Mary  was  a  bright,  attractive,  and  capable 
girl.  William  Davis,  having  reached  his  twenty-seventh 
year,  and  having  saved  money  towards  buying  a  farm 
and  going  to  housekeeping,  wooed  and  won  the  charming 
lass,  and  we  soon  find  them  on  a  farm  of  two  hundred 
acres  adjoining  that  of  his  father,  James  Davis,  who  was 
prospering,  and  who  assisted  William  in  the  purchase  of 
this  farm,  advancing  him  the  double  portion  to  which  he 
was  entitled  by  the  law  of  primogeniture,  which  was  in 
force  at  that  time. 

Mary  Means  was  born  in  Bucks  County,  December  12, 
1735.  It  was  in  1757  that  she  was  married  to  William 
Davis.  To  this  well-mated  couple  were  born  children 
as  follows:  1.  Joseph,  2.  James,  3.  William,  4.  John, 
5.  Patrick,  6.  Margaret,  7.  Henry,  8.  Elizabeth, 
9.  Eliza,  10.  Samuel.  They  were  all  born  in  Tinicum 
township,  Bucks  County,  Pa. 

The  family  tradition  is  that  William  Davis  and  his 
son  James  volunteered,  and  entered  the  service  of  their 
country  in  those  dark  days  of  the  Revolutionary  strug- 
gle, when  Washington  was  retreating  before  the  enemy 
across  the  state  of  New  Jersey.     When  he  had  crossed 

1  Pa.  Arch.,  Ser.  2,  Vol.  2,  p.  505. 


12  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

the  Delaware  with  his  troops,  the  Da  vises,  whose  home 
was  not  far  distant,  were  among  the  first  to  furnish 
much-needed  suppHes  to  the  small  and  discouraged 
army.  William  Davis  and  James  his  son  were  in  the 
battle  of  Trenton,  which  it  will  be  remembered  roused 
the  whole  country  from  despondency,  and  was  a  turning 
point  in  the  history  of  the  great  struggle.  Mary,  the  wife 
and  mother,  was  deeply  imbued  with  the  spirit  of  patriot- 
ism. She  sat  up  all  night  before  the  battle  of  Trenton, 
with  her  younger  children,  scraping  lint  and  making 
bandages.  So  ardent  was  she  in  her  love  for  the  cause  of 
liberty  that  she  refrained  from  drinking  tea  during  the 
entire  period  of  the  war,  partial  as  she  was  to  that  bever- 
age, which  was  indeed  considered  a  great  luxury  by  the 
colonists. 

When  the  Revolutionary  War  was  at  an  end,  and 
American  independence  secured,  William  Davis  sold  his 
farm  and  moved  to  Franklin  County  in  1784.  He  there 
purchased  from  William  Peebles  "315  acres  and  97  perches 
of  land,  and  6  acres  for  roads  and  highways;  also  10  acres 
and  23  perches,  and  the  usual  allowance  for  roads  and 
highways,  for  the  sum  of  £850  lawful  money  of  Pennsyl- 
vania in  gold  and  silver." 

This  farm  was  not  very  far  from  the  town  of  Strasburg, 
often  called  Upper  Strasburg,  which  was  at  that  time  a 
rather  important  point  at  the  foot  of  the  first  mountain  — 
the  Kittochtinny  or  North  Mountain  —  going  west  on 
the  "three-mountain  road."  This  road  ran  along  the 
north  side  of  the  Davis  farm.  It  was  along  this  road 
that  President  Washington  passed  in  1794,  when  return- 
ing from  the  West  whither  he  had  gone  to  quiet  the  boys 
who  had  engaged  in  a  "whisky  insurrection."  It  was 
then  that  William  Davis  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  once 
more  his  old  and  much-loved  commander.  On  this  farm 
the  family  lived  eleven  years,  until  1795,  when  they 
caught  the  Western  fever  and  decided  to  undertake  the 


a 

o 
o 


WILLIAM    AND    MARY  13 

long  and  toilsome  journey  to  the  unsettled  wilds  of  what 
afterwards  became  Crawford,  but  was  then  a  part  of 
Allegheny  County,  Pa.  Although  the  treaty  of  1784 
with  the  Six  Nations  gave  to  the  state  of  Pennsylvania 
all  that  portion  of  the  country,  yet  the  Indians  continued 
to  be  very  troublesome  to  the  first  settlers,  especially 
from  1791  to  1794.  Tho  crushing  defeat  of  the  Western 
Indians  by  General  Wayne  on  August  20,  1794,  relieved 
the  French  Creek  Valley  as  well  as  the  rest  of  the  Western 
country,  and  opened  the  way  for  the  removal  of  the  Davis 
families  to  this  valley.  It  was  the  treaties  of  August  3 
and  November  9,  1795,  with  the  Western  tribes  and  the 
Six  Nations  respectively  that  gave  permanent  peace, 
and  from  that  time  this  part  of  the  state  began  to  improve 
rapidly.  The  last  raid  made  by  the  Indians  within  the 
present  limits  of  Crawford  County  was  on  June  3,  1795. 
James  Findlay  and  Barnabas  McCormick  were  engaged 
making  rails,  about  six  miles  south  of  Meadville,  when 
the  Indians  surprised  and  shot  and  scalped  both  men. 

During  the  eleven  years  sojourn  in  Franklin  County  the 
family  attended  the  Rocky  Spring  Presbyterian  Church, 
five  or  six  miles  distant  from  their  homes,  and  four  miles 
from  Chambersburg,  the  county-seat.  My  friend  and 
school-mate,  William  C.  Lane,  M.D.,  wrote  for  the 
Cumberland  Valley  Sentinel  a  very  interesting  account  of 
this  historic  church.  It  may  also  be  found  in  the 
"Churches  of  the  Valley,"  by  Dr.  Alfred  Nevin.  I  shall 
make  free  use  of  it,  that  my  readers  may  know  something 
of  the  persons  and  places  which  interested  our  common 
ancestors. 

Presbyterial  records  now  in  existence  show  that  there 
was  preaching  at  Rocky  Spring  as  early  as  1739.  Just 
when  the  church  was  organized  we  do  not  know.  The 
original  log  church  was  built  somewhere  in  the  seventeen 
forties.  The  Rev.  John  Craighead  was  installed  as  pastor 
in  1768.     He  was  the  son  of  Mr.  John  Craighead,  who 


14  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

lived  on  his  farm  near  Carlisle,  Pa.,  and  a  cousin  of  the 
Rev.  Thomas  Craighead,  pastor  of  the  Big  Spring  Presby- 
terian Church  in  the  presbytery  of  Carlisle.  The  Rev. 
Richard  Craighead,  who  was  for  a  long  time  pastor  of 
the  Second  Presbyterian  Church  of  Meadville,  was  of  the 
same  family. 

It  was  in  the  old  log  church  that  Mr.  Craighead 
preached  for  many  years.  It  was  there  that  in  glowing 
terms  he  preached  Jesus  Christ  and  Him  crucified,  the 
only  hope  of  salvation,  and  after  the  delivery  of  his  sacred 
message  he  exhorted  the  young  men  of  the  congregation 
in  eloquent  and  patriotic  strains  to  rise  up  and  join  the 
noble  band  then  engaged  under  Washington  in  struggling 
to  free  our  beloved  country  from  British  oppression.  It 
is  related  that  upon  one  occasion  the  patriotic  preacher 
declaimed  in  such  burning  and  powerful  terms  against  the 
wrongs  they  were  then  suffering,  that  all  the  men  in  the 
congregation  rose  from  their  seats,  and  declared  their 
willingness  to  march  to  the  conflict. 

There  was  but  one,  tradition  says,  in  the  entire  as- 
sembly who  was  not  overcome  by  the  stirring  appeal; 
and  that  was  an  aged  woman,  in  whom  maternal  affection, 
recently  caused  to  bleed,  completely  mastered  both  a 
sense  of  propriety  and  the  love  of  liberty.  "Stop,  Mr. 
Craighead,"  she  exclaimed,  "I  jist  want  to  tell  ye,  agin 
you  loss  such  a  purty  boy  as  I  have,  in  the  war,  ye  will 
na  be  so  keen  for  fighting;  quit  talking,  and  gang  yersel 
to  the  war.  Yer  always  preaching  to  the  boys  about  it, 
but  I  dinna  think  ye'd  be  very  likely  to  gang  yerself. 
Jist  go  and  try  it." 

A  company  was  soon  organized,  and  after  an  eloquent 
appeal  to  the  Almighty,  the  reverend  Captain  placed 
himself  at  their  head,  and  the  noble  band  marched  off  to 
the  war. 

Captain  Craighead  engaged  vigorously  in  the  war,  and 
during  the  hours   spent   in   camp    habitually    acted    as 


WILLIAM   AND    MARY  15 

chaplain  to  the  soldiers.  ^Vhen  the  war  was  at  an  end  he 
returned  to  his  charge,  and  faithfully  watched  over  his 
congregation  until  his  death  in  1799. 

Thus  we  see  the  character  of  the  minister  who  preached 
to  the  Davis  family  from  1784  to  1795.  As  the  old  log 
church  gave  place  in  1794  to  a  new  brick  building,  and  as 
this  was  a  year  before  the  Davises  began  their  movement 
to  French  Creek  Valley,  they  no  doubt  took  part  in  erect- 
ing what  is  still  standing  and  known  as  the  "Old  Rocky 
Spring  Church." 

During  the  War  of  the  Revolution  and  for  some  time 
after  it  the  inhabitants  of  the  Cumberland  Valley  were 
much  annoyed  by  the  inroads  of  the  Indians  who  mur- 
dered the  people,  burned  their  houses  and  barns,  destroyed 
their  crops,  and  committed  the  atrocities  usually  charac- 
teristic of  savage  warfare.  The  inhabitants  were  obliged 
to  work  in  their  fields  after  night,  for  fear  of  being  sur- 
prised and  murdered  by  their  subtle  foes.  The  farmer 
would  drop  seed  corn,  as  he  ran  through  the  fields,  and 
cover  it  with  his  foot  while  he  held  a  rifle  in  his  hand, 
and  feared  to  stoop  lest  he  might  be  attacked  by  the 
lurking  Indian.  In  the  neighborhood  of  Strasburg  and 
Roxbury  the  Indians  were  particularly  troublesome.  One 
of  the  stones  in  the  churchyard  at  Rocky  Spring  was 
erected  in  memory  of  James  McCalmont,  Esq.,  who  died 
July  19,  1809,  aged  seventy-two  years.  The  occupant  of 
this  tomb  was  a  neighbor  and  friend  of  William  Davis, 
and  was  a  remarkable  character.  He  was  a  major  in  the 
Revolutionary  War,  and  became  distinguished  as  a  brave 
and  accomplished  soldier.  After  the  war,  when  the 
Indians  at  any  time  made  an  inroad.  Major  McCalmont 
was  generally  selected  as  the  leader  of  the  parties  sent  in 
pursuit  of  the  savages  after  the  perpetration  of  their 
numerous  hostile  acts;  and  from  his  success  in  discover- 
ing their  haunts,  and  inflicting  summary  vengeance  upon 
them  for  their  atrocities,  he  became  quite  celebrated  as 


16  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

an  Indian  hunter,  and  was  considered  by  the  savages  as  a 
daring  and  formidable  foe.  As  a  bush-fighter  he  was 
quite  equal  to  the  most  wily  Indian.  One  day,  when 
alone  in  the  woods  near  his  residence  at  Strasburg,  he  met 
a  tall,  desperate-looking  savage.  Happening  to  see  each 
other  simultaneously,  they  took  to  trees,  and  each  en- 
deavored to  get  a  shot  at  his  antagonist.  After  evading 
each  other  for  some  time,  the  Indian  incautiously  peeped 
from  behind  his  tree,  and  instantly  received  a  ball  from 
the  rifle  of  his  dexterous  enemy.  Upon  another  occasion, 
while  returning  home  from  Chambersburg,  he  was  pur- 
sued by  a  party  of  Indians  who  were  bent  on  securing  the 
scalp  of  their  long-time  foe.  After  running  for  a  consider- 
able distance,  he  darted  into  a  barn  which  stood  near  by, 
escaped  from  the  other  side,  and  secreted  himself  in  a 
thicket  unobserved  by  his  pursuers.  The  savages,  sup- 
posing he  was  yet  in  the  barn,  set  it  on  fire,  and  stood 
around  it  yelling  in  exultation  at  their  supposed  success 
in  capturing  their  foe.  When  they  discovered  that  they 
were  baflfled,  they  commenced  searching  for  the  Major. 
They  soon  found  his  trail,  and  again  joined  hotly  in  the 
pursuit.  The  Major  was  remarkable  for  his  swiftness  of 
foot,  and  succeeded  in  outrunning  the  Indians,  who  pur- 
sued him  to  the  fort  at  Shippensburg.  They  often 
chased  him  to  this  fort,  we  are  told,  and,  on  several 
occasions,  he  selected  men  from  the  garrison,  and  in  turn 
pursued  the  Indians  and  avenged  himself  by  returning 
with  their  scalps.  One  day,  in  harvest  time,  he  was  work- 
ing in  the  field  with  several  other  persons.  The  guns  of 
the  party  were  in  a  distant  part  of  the  field.  A  party  of 
prowling  savages  suddenly  sprang  from  the  thicket,  and 
one  more  bold  than  the  rest  ran  for  the  guns.  McCalmont 
also  started  off  on  the  same  errand  and,  although  the 
Indian  had  the  advantage  of  the  ground,  reached  the 
guns  first,  one  of  which  he  snatched  from  the  stack,  and 
with  it  shot  the  savage  dead.     The  settlers  coming  up 


WILLIAM   AND    MARY  17 

soon  after  the  Major,  the  Indians  retreated.  He  was 
considered  by  the  Indians  quite  as  swift  a  runner  as  they, 
and  fully  equal  to  themselves  in  all  the  wiles  and  strategy 
of  their  peculiar  warfare.  In  consequence  of  his  extraor- 
dinary fleetness  and  agility,  they  bestowed  on  him  the 
appellation  of  "supple  McCalmont."  On  the  south- 
western side  of  the  town  of  Strasburg  there  is  a  cave, 
called  " McCalmont's  Cave,"  in  which  he  was  accustomed 
to  hide,  when  closely  pursued  by  the  Indians.  It  was  in 
the  midst  of  a  thicket,  and  so  covered  by  thick  vines  and 
bushes  that  it  afforded  an  admirable  retreat  in  times  of 
danger. 

The  Major  was  a  tall,  muscular  man,  of  modest  and 
unpretending  manners.  In  private  life  his  quiet,  diffident 
deportment  gave  no  indication  of  the  dauntless  spirit  of 
the  man,  of  which  he  presented  so  many  evidences  in  his 
encounters  with  the  Indians,  as  well  as  with  the  British 
army,  during  his  campaign  under  General  Washington. 
After  the  conclusion  of  the  war,  he  was  appointed  one  of 
the  associate  judges  of  Franklin  County  soon  after  its 
formation.     He  died  at  Strasburg  in  1809. 

Patriotism  has  ever  been  a  predominant  feature  in  the 
character  of  the  Presbyterians  in  the  Cumberland  Valley. 
In  1774  a  number  of  them  met  at  Carlisle,*  in  Cumberland 
County,  of  which  Franklin  then  formed  a  part,  and  passed 
a  series  of  patriotic  resolutions,  expressing  their  sympathy 
with  the  cause  of  oppressed  America,  and  in  the  name  of 
the  Lord  of  Hosts  declaring  their  willingness  to  participate 
in  the  dangers  of  the  struggle  whenever  the  government 
might  demand  their  services.  Patriotism  then  pervaded 
all  classes  from  the  minister  down  to  the  humblest  mem- 
ber of  his  flock,  and  was  something  more  than  a  wild 
roving  spirit  of  adventure.  It  was  a  higher  and  nobler 
feeling  —  a  principle  of  resistance  to  oppression,  and  a 
firm,  unconquerable  desire  to  establish  the  liberty  of 
America,  and  secondarily  that  of  the  whole  world. 


18  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

William  and  Mary,  on  reaching  French  Creek  Valley, 
located  on  a  farm,  a  few  miles  north  of  the  small  village 
of  Meadville.  They  became  charter-members  of  the 
First  Presbyterian  Church.  Mr.  Davis  was  elected  one 
of  the  elders.  He  and  his  son  James,  and  his  brother-in- 
law,  Mr.  Beatty,  were  ordained  and  installed  as  elders, 
at  the  same  time  with  the  installation  of  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Stockton  as  pastor  of  the  lately  organized  church.  Mrs. 
Davis  died  at  their  home  in  Mead  township,  February  9, 
1813.  Whether  her  husband  continued  living  on  the 
farm  after  her  decease,  or  whether  he  sold  the  farm  that 
he  might  live  with  one  of  his  sons,  we  do  not  know.  But 
we  do  know  that  he  was  blind  for  sixteen  years  before  his 
death,  that  is,  from  1808,  and  that  he  spent  the  closing 
years  of  his  life,  and  passed  away  from  earth,  at  the  home 
of  his  son  Samuel  in  Vernon  township. 

William  Davis  died  September  20,  1824,  in  the  ninety- 
fifth  year  of  his  age.  The  Meadville  Messenger,  speaking 
of  this  "venerable  and  highly  esteemed"  man,  said,  "Of 
the  deceased  it  may  truly  be  said  that  he  was  a  devout 
and  sincere  Christian,  an  honest  and  upright  man,  and 
one  who  practised  every  social  and  religious  duty. 

"  Few  arrive  at  the  great  age  he  attained,  and  very  few, 
like  him,  descend  to  the  tomb  with  that  inestimable 
character,  that  they  have  not  left  behind  them  a  single 
enemy,  nor  one  who  can  with  truth  speak  of  them  one 
hard  or  improper  word. 

"He  died,  as  he  had  lived,  in  the  service  of  his  God, 
retaining  his  mental  faculties  to  the  last,  and  has  gone  to 
enjoy  the  pleasures  of  Heaven,  which  will  last  forever- 
more." 

The  American  Sunday  School  Magazine  for  March, 
1825,  contained  a  sketch  of  Mr.  Davis,  as  a  Christian, 
of  which  I  give  a  part : 

"The  venerable  William  Davis,  of  Fairfield,  in  the 
vicinity  of  Meadville,  Pa.,  is  supposed  to  have  been  the 


WILLI AI^I   AND   MARY  19 

oldest  person  in  Crawford  County.  .  .  .  For  sixteen 
years  prior  to  his  decease  'those  that  look  out  of  the 
windows  were  darkened,'  and  he  was  totally  debarred 
the  privilege  of  reading  the  Word  of  God,  which  from 
childhood  he  had  been  taught  to  revere,  and  which, 
during  a  great  part  of  his  life,  had  been  precious  to  his 
soul.  It  was  with  him  a  matter  of  grateful  acknowledg- 
ment that,  in  youth  through  the  care  of  his  parents,  he 
had  committed  to  memory  many  chapters  from  the  Bible, 
and  many  of  Erskine's  '  Gospel  Sonnets.'  These  were  so 
thoroughly  impressed  upon  his  mind  that  he  could  repeat 
them  with  great  correctness  at  the  close  of  his  pilgrimage; 
and  they  afforded  him  a  continual  heart-cheering  repast 
—  an  important  memento  for  all  who  in  the  morning  of 
life  have  the  opportunity  of  treasuring  up  much  from  the 
Holy  Scriptures  in  Sabbath  Schools. 

"The  evening  of  his  long  protracted  day  was  greatly 
cheered  by  the  accounts  he  heard  of  the  wonderful  opera- 
tions in  different  parts  of  the  world  for  the  dissemination 
of  religious  truth.  Of  these  the  Sabbath  School  institu- 
tions were  not  the  least  interesting  to  him,  as  they  are  so 
happily  calculated  to  promote  the  temporal  and  eternal 
welfare  of  millions  of  young  immortals;  and  it  was  a 
source  of  no  small  delight  to  this  good  old  man,  to  listen 
to  his  children's  children  when  repeating  the  chapters 
they  had  learned  from  an  exercise  in  these  most  useful 
establishments. 

"The  Monthly  Concert  of  Prayer  was  held  at  his 
humble  mansion  on  the  first  Monday  in  March,  1823,  in 
which  his  soul  appeared  much  to  rejoice.  This  circum- 
stance is  mentioned  in  order  to  add  that  Mr.  Davis  was 
the  mouth  of  the  little  assembly  to  the  throne  of  grace 
in  the  closing  prayer  of  the  occasion. 

"It  was  truly  an  interesting  scene  to  behold  this  vener- 
able patriarchal  disciple  of  Jesus,  whose  life  had  extended 
through  more  than  a  nineteenth  part  of  the  Christian  era. 


20  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

tottering  on  the  verge  of  eternity,  longing  to  be  with  his 
blessed  Redeemer,  yet  patiently  waiting  till  his  change 
should  come,  uniting  with  the  myriads  of  Christendom 
in  pouring  forth  his  petition  for  the  prosperity  of  Zion, 
for  the  influence  of  the  Holy  Spirit  to  descend  like  a  shower 
from  Heaven  on  all  the  dwellers  upon  earth,  praying  for 
the  latter-day  glory  of  the  church,  when  there  shall  be 
one  fold  and  one  Shepherd,  and  when  every  knee  shall 
bow  to  the  name  of  the  Incarnate  God. 

"  N.  N." 

January  31,  1825. 

Who  would  not  rather  trace  his  ancestry  back  to  a  man 
of  God,  like  William  Davis,  whose  one  intense  desire 
was  that,  through  the  spread  of  Gospel  truth,  the  world 
might  be  filled  with  peace  and  righteousness,  with 
brotherly  love  and  holy  joy,  than  to  a  multi-million- 
aire, whose  accumulations  of  wealth  had  been  made 
in  a  questionable  manner,  or  to  a  royal  personage  whose 
personal  character  and  influence  were  anything  but 
good? 

And  Mary  Means,  our  common  ancestor,  was  a  woman 
worthy  of  such  a  husband  as  William  Davis.  Mrs. 
Horner,  the  mother  of  my  informant,  Mrs.  Gordon,  in 
her  youth  knew  her  grandmother,  and  often  described 
to  her  children  the  many  excellences  of  character  which 
belonged  to  that  good  woman.  To  the  unaffected  piety 
of  a  Hannah  More  or  an  Isabella  Graham  she  united  the 
sagacity,  the  faculty,  to  use  Mrs.  Stowe's  word,  which 
is  described  in  Proverbs  xxxi,  which  gives  a  beautiful 
picture  of  the  wise  and  capable  woman,  whose  "children 
rise  up,  and  call  her  blessed." 

Of  the  ten  children  of  William  and  Mary  Davis,  three 
were  daughters,  and  seven,  sons.  I  learned  from  Mr. 
George  S.  Davis,  of  Parral,  Chihuahua,  Mex.,  who  received 
the  information  from  his  aunt  and  foster-mother,  Mrs. 
Emily  Davis  Smith,  that  Margaret  and  Eliza  both  died 


JOSEPH  21 

in  infancy,  and  Elizabeth  lived  only  six  or  seven  years. 
The  seven  sons  all  lived  to  be  old  men. 

The  different  families  descended  from  William  and 
Mary,  with  many  of  whom  I  have  formed  a  delightful 
acquaintance  and  friendship,  are  descended  either  from 
Joseph,  James,  William,  John,  Patrick,  Henry,  or  Samuel. 
These  are  the  heads  of  tribes. 


I.   JOSEPH 

Joseph  Davis,  the  first  child  and  oldest  son  of 
William  Davis  and  Mary  Means,  was  born  in  1758  in 
Tinicum  township,  Bucks  County,  Pa.,  and  died  in  Ross 
County,  Ohio,  in  1811.  He  appears  to  have  been  of  an 
enterprising  spirit,  and  disposed  to  see  something  of 
the  world.  He,  in  all  probability,  was  in  the  army  of  the 
Revolution.  We  find  him  in  1783  in  Northumberland 
County,  Pa.,  on  the  Susquehanna  River,  where  he  married 
Sarah  Shoch  in  that  year.  Seven  children  were  born 
to  them  in  Northumberland  County,  Pa.  Their  names 
were:  1.  Lot,  2.  Mercy,  3.  William,  4.  Sarah,  5.  Ruth, 
6.  Thomas,  7.  Joseph. 

Sarah  Shoch,  as  her  name  indicates,  was  of  German 
origin.  She  was  born  in  1765,  and  died  at  her  daughter 
Ruth's,  in  Beaver  County,  Pa.,  in  1841.  Her  brother, 
Michael  Shoch,  was  a  soldier  in  the  Revolutionary  War. 

In  1810  Joseph  Davis  and  his  wife,  with  Lot,  Sarah, 
and  Joseph,  moved  to  Ohio.  Mr.  Davis  settled  near 
Chillicothe,  Ross  County,  and  there  died  in  1811.  Mrs. 
Davis  returned  to  Pennsylvania  and  spent  the  remainder 
of  her  life  with  her  daughter  Ruth,  in  Beaver  County. 

A.  Lot  Davis  was  born  June  10,  1785.  In  1810,  when 
he  was  twenty -five,  he  moved  to  Ohio.  Whether  he 
married  before  leaving  Pennsylvania  or  after  he  moved 
to  Ohio  is  not  known.     But  he  married,  and  secured  a 


22  THE   DAVIS   FMIILY 

farm  in  Franklin  County,  not  far  from  Columbus,  where 
he  spent  his  life.  Mrs.  Judge  Cullen,  of  Rushville,  Ind., 
recollects  going  with  her  father,  Thomas  Davis,  to  visit 
her  Uncle  Lot,  and  his  family,  but  she  was  so  young  at  the 
time  that  she  does  not  retain  any  particulars  concerning 
the  trip  from  Rising  Sun,  Ind.,  or  of  the  family  they 
visited,  except  that  there  was  in  it  a  daughter,  Mary  Davis. 

B.  Mercy  Davis  was  born  March  2,  1787,  and  died 
February  25,  1829.  Mercy  was  an  interesting  character, 
and  kept  up  a  correspondence  with  her  brother  Thomas 
in  Indiana.  It  is  to  her  letters  that  the  descendants  of 
Thomas  are  indebted  for  what  knowledge  they  have  of 
their  ancestry  —  the  reasons  for  which  will  appear  when 
we  come  to  speak  of  Thomas. 

C.  William  Davis  was  born  May  10,  1789.  He 
married,  and  spent  his  life  in  Pennsylvania. 

D.  Sarah  Davis  was  born  April  4,  1791.  She  went 
with  her  parents  to  Ohio,  married  there,  and  spent  her 
life  in  or  near  Zanesville. 

E.  Ruth  Davis  was  born  May  3,  1793,  was  married 
in  1810  —  the  same  year  in  which  her  parents  moved  to 
Ohio,  and  spent  her  life  in  Beaver  County,  Pa.  It  was 
with  her  that  the  mother  found  a  home  from  1811  until 
her  death  in  1841. 

F.  Thomas  Davis  was  born  February  20,  1795,  and 
died  at  Rising  Sun,  Ind.,  July  15,  1864.  Like  his  father, 
he  wanted  to  see  something  of  the  world.  So,  at  the 
age  of  twelve  years,  that  is,  in  1807,  he  ran  away  from 
his  home  east  of  the  Susquehanna,  and  found  his  way  to 
Pittsburg.  Here  he  apprenticed  himself  to  a  shoemaker, 
and  learned  the  trade.     From  Pittsburg  he  went  to  Cin- 


THOMAS    DA^'IS 

{Son  of  Joseph) 


a 


JOSEPH  23 

cinnati  where  he  worked  at  his  trade  and  married,  Septem- 
ber 21,  1815,  Mary  Ford,  a  young  widow.  They  had 
one  child,  Frances  E.  Davis,  born  in  1817,  who  died  in 
1834.  IVIrs.  Ford  had  one  child  by  her  first  husband, 
Catherine  B.  Ford,  who  died  in  1830. 

After  the  death  of  his  wife,  Mr.  Davis  married  a  second 
time.  And  the  way  he  found  a  second  wife  was  on  this 
wise.  Thomas  appears  to  have  been  partial  to  widows. 
He  had  met  one  from  Dearborn  County,  Ind.,  when  she 
was  visiting  in  Cincinnati,  and  he  determined  that  he 
would  go  over  and  court  her.  But  Divine  Providence 
ordered  otherwise.  On  the  way  he  was  caught  in  a  storm; 
he  found  shelter  in  a  farmhouse,  and  in  it  he  met  his  fate. 
It  was  the  home  of  Jonathan  Lewis,  who  had  a  daughter 
who  was  a  young  widow,  ELannah  Lewis  Langdon,  and 
Thomas  went  no  farther.  They  were  married  February  6, 
1830,  lived  in  Harrison,  0.,  then  in  Cincinnati.  They 
afterward  moved  to  Rising  Sun,  Ind.,  where  they  spent 
the  rest  of  their  lives. 

Thomas  Davis  was  successful  in  business,  and  became 
a  river  merchant,  loading  boats  and  sending  them  down 
the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  rivers,  with  merchandise  for  the 
planters.  The  chief  part  of  his  cargo  always  was  boots 
and  shoes.  He  never  became  rich,  however,  for  his  early 
struggle  with  poverty  had  made  him  generous,  especially 
toward  boys  starting  in  life.  He  always  had  a  number 
of  them  in  his  home  and  business,  teaching  them  to  help 
themselves  and  others.  In  1834  his  brother,  Lot  Davis, 
visited  him  at  Rising  Sun.  This  was  the  first  member 
of  his  family  he  had  seen  since  he  ran  away  from  home  in 
1807,  although  he  had  kept  up  a  correspondence  with  his 
sister  Mercy.  In  1840  he,  with  his  wife  and  two  youngest 
children,  Frances  and  Rodman,  visited  his  sister  Ruth  in 
Beaver  County,  Pa.  This  was  a  timely  visit,  for  there 
he  met  his  mother,  after  a  separation  of  thirty-three 
years,  and  she  passed  away  from  earthly  scenes  the  next 


24  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

year.  Some  years  later  he  took  with  him  his  daughter 
Frances,  and  visited  his  brother  Lot,  and  his  sister 
Sarah. 

It  was  because  he  left  home  at  such  an  early  age,  that 
Mr.  Davis  left  so  little  knowledge  of  their  ancestry  to  his 
children,  and  grandchildren.  They  only  knew  that 
Thomas's  father  was  named  Joseph,  and  that  Joseph  was 
the  son  of  William  Davis,  who  was  born  in  1730,  and  died 
in  Crawford  County,  Pa.,  in  1824,  in  the  ninety-fifth  year 
of  his  age.  But  some  of  them  had  a  very  strong  desire 
to  know  more.  So  that,  in  April,  1910,  Mrs.  Dr.  Sexton, 
of  Rushville,  Ind.,  wrote  to  the  postmaster  of  Meadville, 
Pa.,  inquiring  whether  any  descendants  of  William  Davis, 
described  as  above,  were  living  in  Crawford  County.  The 
postmaster  handed  the  letter  to  Mrs.  Belle  Hassler 
Welty,  who  forwarded  it  to  me.  This  resulted  in  a 
pleasant  correspondence,  and  in  a  very  delightful  visit 
to  Rushville  and  Rising  Sun  in  October,  1910,  where  the 
descendants  of  Joseph  Davis  were  as  friendly  and  agree- 
able as  if  we  had  known  each  other  all  our  lives.  This 
was  an  additional  assurance  to  me  that  they  are  "sure- 
enough"  descendants  of  our  William  and  Mary,  and  that 
the  sterling  qualities  of  that  noble  couple  are  inherited 
by  all  branches  of  the  family. 

Hannah  Lewis  Langdon  had  a  daughter,  Adelia,  by  her 
first  husband,  Jesse  Langdon.  She  married  a  Mr.  Carey 
and  lived  in  Louisville,  Ky. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Thomas  Davis  had  five  children:  1.  John 
Q.,  2.  Clara  A.,  3.  Frances  S.,  4.  Agnes,  5.  Rodman  L. 

1.  John  Quinct  Davis  was  born  in  Hamilton  County, 
O.,  December  1,  1830.  He  married  Julia  E.  Close 
July  22,  1860,  and  died  September  14,  1891.  He  was  a 
prominent  and  successful  business  man  of  Rising  Sun, 
Ind.  Like  his  father  he  was  in  the  shoe  business.  The 
children   of   Mr.   and   Mrs.   Davis   were:     1.   Myra   C, 


JOSEPH  25 

2.  Thomas  E.,  3.  Benjamin  C,  4.  Paul  A.,  5.  Mary  E., 
6.  Hannah  L. 

1.  Myra  C.  Davis  was  born  April  29,  1861,  was 
married  to  Dr.  Robert  G.  Langsdale  October  25,  1882, 
and  died  July  30,  1883. 

2.  Thomas  Elbridge  Davis  was  born  December  20, 
1862,  and  died  August  16,  1864. 

3.  Benjamin  Calvert  Davis  was  born  July  31,  1866, 
and  died  January  24,  1867. 

4.  Paul  Allen  Davis  was  born  January  24,  1870,  and 
married,  in  Cincinnati,  O.,  Sara  Frances  Johnson, 
June  6,  1894.  To  them  was  born  a  daughter,  Pauline 
Frances  Davis,  November  27,  1898.  Mr.  P.  Davis  is 
in  the  shoe  business,  and  is  one  of  the  leading  citizens  of 
Rising  Sun. 

5.  Hannah  Lewis  Davis  was  born  August  16,  1875, 
was  married,  October  15,  1903,  to  Ethan  Allen  Ander- 
son, of  Rising  Sun,  a  clothing  merchant.  They  have  a 
daughter,  Mary  Davis  Anderson,  born  December  12, 1907. 

6.  Mary  Ellison  Davis  was  born  August  16,  1875, 
was  married,  January  2,  1906,  to  William  T.  Burns, 
of  Rising  Sun,  a  traveling  salesman.  They  have  a  son, 
William  Davis  Burns,  born  December  12,  1907. 

These  twin  sisters,  interesting  and  attractive  ladies, 
have  been  favored  in  marrying  fine  men,  of  whom  they 
may  well  be  proud. 

Mrs.  Julia  Davis  still  lives,  hale  and  hearty,  intelligent 
and  friendly.  She  and  her  son,  Mr.  Paul  Davis,  and  his 
little  daughter  Pauline,  occupy  a  pleasant  home,  in  the 
central  part  of  the  quaint  and  restful  old  town,  Mrs. 
Burns  next  door,  and  Mrs.  Anderson  one  door  beyond. 
Is  not  that  a  nice  arrangement  for  a  mother  and  her  son 
and  daughters  .^^ 

2.  Clara  Augusta  Davis,  second  child  of  Thomas 
Davis,  was  born  in  1832.     She  was  married  in  1861  to 


26  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

Benjamin  C.  Calvert,  of  Rising  Sun,  and  died  in  1877. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Calvert  had  two  children,  Fanny  A.,  born 
in  1862,  who  died  in  1865,  and  Louisiana,  born  in  1864, 
who  died  in  1867. 

3.  Frances  Sarah  Davis  was  born  at  Harrison,  O., 
August  7,  1834.  She  spent  her  early  life  at  Rising  Sun, 
Ind.,  where  she  was  married,  October  14,  1857,  to  William 
Allen  Cullen,  a  young  lawyer  of  Rushville,  Ind. 

Judge  William  Allen  Cullen  was  born  at  Patriot,  Ind., 
in  1834.  His  parents  were  quite  poor,  and  he  attributes 
his  education  and  success  in  life  largely  to  the  indomitable 
courage  and  persistence  of  his  mother.  He  entered 
Hanover  College  in  1854,  changed  afterward  to  Wabash, 
and  later  to  De  Pauw  University,  where  he  was  graduated 
in  1857  in  the  law  department. 

That  same  year  he  opened  an  office  in  Rushville.  His 
next  step  upward  was  to  marry  Frances  Davis.  He  was 
at  that  time  a  Democrat,  and  became  editor  of  the  Jack- 
sonian,  the  leading  party  organ  in  Rush  County.  But 
at  the  breaking  out  of  the  war  he  espoused  the  cause  of 
the  Union  and  antislavery,  and  became  a  Republican. 

He  was  a  personal  friend  of  Oliver  P.  Morton,  Indiana's 
famous  war  governor,  and  was  kept  from  enlisting  by 
the  plea  that  his  fiery  eloquence  was  needed  at  home  in 
aiding  Morton,  and  in  persuading  others  to  enlist.  But 
he  finally  enlisted  and  became  lieutenant-colonel  of  the 
123d  Indiana  Volunteers,  Hovey's  Division,  and  served 
with  honor,  especially  in  the  battle  of  Resaca. 

After  the  war  he  was  elected  judge  of  the  Court  of 
Common  Pleas  and  later  of  the  Circuit  Court,  serving 
in  all  thirteen  years.  He  then  resigned  in  order  to 
devote  his  entire  time  to  criminal  practice.  He  was  twice 
a  member  of  the  Senate  of  his  state.  In  the  Republican 
National  Convention,  at  Chicago,  where  he  was  a  dele- 
gate, he  made  the  speech  which  held  the  Indiana  delega- 


I 


I 


JOSEPH  27 

tion  together  for  his  Hfelong  friend,  Benjamin  Harrison, 
and  thus  secured  him  the  nomination.  Mr.  Harrison 
acknowledged  this,  and  later  offered  him  "anything  he 
wanted."  He  declined  for  himself,  but  he  spoke  a  good 
word  for  his  friend,  John  K.  Gowdy,  who  was  sent  to 
Paris,  as  consul-general,  where  he  served  for  eight  years. 

Judge  Cullen  is  a  stanch  Presbyterian  and  an  elder  in 
the  church,  a  Mason,  and  a  member  of  the  G.  A.  R.  On 
account  of  increasing  deafness  he  has  devoted  himself 
exclusively,  for  the  last  ten  years,  to  his  large  and  beauti- 
ful farm  in  the  vicinity  of  Rushville,  and  to  the  Rush 
County  National  Bank,  of  which  he  is  vice-president. 

I  had  the  great  pleasure  of  meeting  Judge  and  Mrs. 
Cullen  in  October,  1910,  at  the  home  of  Mrs.  Sexton,  their 
only  daughter.  For  some  years  they  have  both  been 
laboring  under  some  of  the  infirmities  of  age,  and  at  times 
suffering  considerably.  I  was  favored  in  finding  them 
reasonably  well,  and  able  to  add  greatly  to  the  pleasure 
of  my  visit. 

They  have  one  child  —  a  daughter  —  Hannah  Cullen, 
born  at  Rushville  in  1858,  and  wedded  to  Dr.  J.  C.  Sexton 
September  27,  1882. 

John  Chase  Sexton  was  born  at  Rushville  in  1858. 
His  parents  were  Dr.  Marshall  Sexton  and  Elizabeth 
Brooks,  his  wife,  who  were  married  in  1844.  Mr.  Sexton 
was  graduated  from  the  high  school  of  his  native  place 
in  1876.  He  entered  Hanover  College  in  1878.  After 
spending  two  years  there  he  entered  Ohio  Medical  College 
at  Cincinnati,  graduating  in  1882.  He  began  the  prac- 
tise of  medicine  and  surgery,  in  Rushville,  very  success- 
fully; but  in  the  course  of  time  he  became  more  and 
more  interested  in  surgery,  so  that  in  1894  he  built 
a  small  hospital,  and  confined  himself  exclusively  to 
that  noble  branch  of  his  profession.  In  1902  it  was 
necessary  to  replace  this  building  by  the  present  larger 
and   finely   equipped   one;     and   this   hardly   meets   his 


28  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

present  needs.  In  1904  he  accepted  the  chair  of  Abdomi- 
nal Surgery  in  the  State  College  at  Indianapolis,  and  a 
clinic  in  the  State  Hospital;  this  was  afterward  consoli- 
dated with  the  State  University  at  Bloomington,  and  he 
was  again  called  to  the  same  chair.  He  delivers  lectures 
each  season  to  the  senior  class,  and  has  found  it  necessary 
to  open  an  office  in  the  city  also.  His  private  work,  how- 
ever, is  nearest  his  heart.  The  hospital  at  Rushville, 
designed  and  built  according  to  his  own  ideas,  is  visited 
by  members  of  the  profession,  from  far  and  near.  He  is 
looked  upon  as  the  only  man  who  has  successfully  estab- 
lished a  hospital,  in  a  small  town,  on  a  paying  basis.  Not 
long  since  "Who's  Who  and  Why"  devoted  some  space 
to  him  and  his  work,  being  one  out  of  two  hundred  and 
fifty-eight  Indianians  sketched  in  the  book. 

Personally  Dr.  Sexton  is  a  simple,  gracious,  earnest 
man,  doing  much  in  a  quiet  way  for  humanity,  and  hating, 
above  all  things,  shams  and  pretension. 

I  had  the  great  pleasure  of  spending  a  day  or  two  with 
Dr.  and  Mrs,  Sexton  in  their  elegant  and  hospitable 
home,  and  of  seeing  with  my  own  eyes  that  work  of 
the  Doctor's  brain,  the  hospital,  on  his  own  green  lawn, 
with  its  bevy  of  trained  nurses,  and  its  immaculate  and 
well-furnished  apartments. 

Dr.  and  Mrs.  Sexton  have  two  children:  1.  Frances 
Elizabeth,  born  in  1886,  and  married,  in  1910,  to  D.  C. 
Green.  Their  home  is  in  Albany,  Oregon.  It  was  the 
only  infelicity  of  my  trip  to  Indiana  to  see  the  descend- 
ants of  Joseph  Davis,  that  I  did  not  meet  Mrs.  Green, 
who  was  expected  soon  to  visit  her  old  home  and  friends. 
2.  Cullen,  born  in  1896.  A  youth  of  fourteen,  he 
appeared  to  me  to  be  a  young  man.  Bright  and  intelli- 
gent, and  making  a  good  use  of  his  advantages,  he  will, 
I  trust,  be  a  joy  to  his  parents  and  friends,  and  a  blessing 
to  the  world. 

4.   Agnes  Davis,  an  infant,  who  died  in  1835. 


JOSEPH  29 

5.  Rodman  Lewis  Davis  was  born  in  1836,  and 
died  June  30,  1904.  He  studied  law  under  Judge  Cullen 
in  Rushville,  Indiana,  and  on  October  10,  1862,  married 
Frances  Wolfe,  of  the  same  place.  In  that  year  he 
entered  the  army,  and  was  made  First  Lieutenant  of 
Company  C,  16th  Indiana  Volunteer  Infantry.  Colonel 
Wolfe,  the  father  of  Mrs.  Davis,  was  commander  of  the 
regiment.  Lieutenant  Davis  saw  severe  service,  notably 
at  Richmond,  Ky.,  where  Colonel  Wolfe  was  slain  while 
bravely  rallying  his  men  against  an  overwhelming  force. 

After  the  war  he  went  to  Rising  Sun,  Ind.,  and  re- 
sumed the  practice  of  law.  His  abihty  and  energy  soon 
made  him  a  prominent  figure  in  his  own  community  and 
elsewhere.  He  was  prosecuting  attorney  for  the  Seventh 
Judicial  District  for  fourteen  years,  and  mayor  of  Rising 
Sun  for  five  years.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Presby- 
terian Church,  and  one  of  its  trustees  for  more  than 
twenty  years.  He  was  an  active  member  of  a  number 
of  societies,  and  was  noted  as  an  eloquent  public  speaker. 
As  a  husband  he  was  ever  kind  and  loving;  as  a  father, 
wise  and  tender.  To  his  children  he  was  indeed  a  com- 
panion and  playmate;  always  bringing  sunshine  into  his 
home  and  into  the  social  circle. 

Three  children  were  born  to  Mr.  and  IVIrs.  Rodman 
Davis:  1.  Harry  W.,  2.  John  L.,  3.  Edward  W. 

1.  HL^RRY  Wolfe  Davis  was  born  November  8,  1864, 
but  died  in  1872. 

2.  John  Lewis  Davis  was  born  November  21,  1869, 
and  died  December  28,  1901,  aged  32  years.  He  was 
graduated  from  the  High  School  of  his  native  town. 
After  two  years  spent  in  Washington  as  assistant  clerk 
in  the  House  of  Representatives,  he  went  to  De  Pauw 
University,  where  he  was  graduated  from  the  Law 
Department  in  1892.  He  was  graduated  also  from  the 
Military  Department,  and  the  same  year  received  a 
Captain's  Commission.     He  was  then  associated  with  his 


30  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

father  in  the  practice  of  law  until  1895,  when  he  re- 
moved to  Greensburg,  Ind.  He  attained  a  high  standing 
in  his  profession,  and  was  elected  prosecuting  attorney  in 
the  Eighth  Judicial  District  in  1898.  This  excellent 
young  man  was  a  member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church, 
and,  by  his  genial  and  kindly  disposition  and  pleasing 
manner,  he  endeared  himself  to  all  who  knew  him 

3.  Edward  Wolfe  Davis,  born  August  11,  1877,  and 
died  April  28,  1910,  in  his  thirty-third  year.  He  was 
graduated  from  the  High  School  at  Rising  Sun  in  1896. 
and  then  entered  the  Indiana  State  University  at  Bloom- 
ington,  where  he  spent  two  years.  Called  from  home  by 
the  serious  sickness  of  his  brother,  he  after  a  time 
entered  the  Law  Department  of  the  State  University, 
and  was  graduated  therefrom  in  1904.  He  was  meeting 
with  marked  success  in  his  chosen  profession  in  Indian- 
apolis, when  he  was  called  home  again  by  the  illness  and 
death  of  his  father.  He  spent  two  years  in  Rising  Sun, 
having  been  appointed  deputy  prosecuting  attorney,  and 
settling  up  the  business  of  his  father  in  a  very  capable 
manner.  He  then  returned  to  Indianapolis,  where  he 
was  forging  his  way  to  the  front,  when  disease  overtook 
him,  and  death  ere  long  claimed  him  for  its  own.  But 
a  short  life  nobly  lived  is  not  lost.  To  a  Christian  death 
does  not  "end  all,"  nor  is  it  in  any  sense  a  calamity. 
It  is  only  a  transition  and  a  promotion. 

I  had  the  pleasure  of  meeting  Mrs.  Rodman  Davis,  in 
Cincinnati,  in  the  fall  of  1910.  It  appeared  to  me  that 
affliction  and  sorrow  had  wrought  in  her  that  blessed  work 
they  are  intended  to  produce  in  all  who  are  "rightly  exer- 
cised thereby."  They  had  ripened  and  mellowed  a  lovely 
character.     She  is  a  member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church. 

G.  Joseph  Davis,  seventh  child  and  fourth  son  of 
Joseph  Davis.  I  have  failed  to  obtain  any  other  data 
concerning  this  son. 


I 


n.   JAMES 

James  DA^^s,  the  second  son  of  William  and  Mary- 
Means  Davis,  was  born  in  1760  in  Tinicum  township, 
Bucks  County,  Pa.  The  better  part  of  his  education 
he  received  in  his  good  Christian  home,  and  he  grew  up 
on  the  farm  of  two  hundred  acres  which  his  father 
owned  in  Tinicum.  In  1783,  at  the  age  of  twenty- 
three,  he  married  Rachel  Stewart.  A  year  later  he 
and  his  young  wife  moved,  with  his  parents  and  their 
family,  to  Franklin  County,  where  they  spent  eleven 
years  on  a  fine  large  farm  near  Strasburg.  In  1795,  the 
year  in  which  William  and  Mary  moved  westward, 
James  also,  ^\'ith  his  wife  and  four  children,  moved  to  the 
"back  woods,"  and  settled  in  what  afterward  became 
Cravs-ford  County,  about  six  miles  southeast  of  where 
the  village  of  Meadville  had  been  lately  started  by  David 
Mead.  The  farm  which  James  Davis  purchased,  prob- 
ably covered  with  timber  at  that  time,  was  in  what  after- 
ward became  Vernon  township.  He  there  spent  the 
remainder  of  his  life.  Allegheny  County  comprised  the 
whole  country  from  Pittsburg  to  Lake  Erie.  Mead 
township  at  first  embraced  the  whole  of  what  became 
Crawford  and  Erie  counties.  The  County  of  Crawford 
was  organized  in  1800.  It  was  named  after  Col.  William 
Crawford,  one  of  the  most  distinguished  frontiersmen  of 
western  Pennsylvania,  and  the  friend  of  General  Wash- 
ington. He  figured  honorably  in  the  Revolutionary  War. 
In  1782  he  was  sent  with  troops  against  the  Wyandot  and 
Delaware  Indians.  In  a  conflict  with  them  he  was 
greatly  outnumbered.  While  the  main  body  of  his  men 
made  their  escape.  Colonel  Crawford  and  a  few  others 
were  taken  prisoners,  and  put  to  death,  the  brave  Colonel 
being  tortured  with  fire  for  many  hours  by  his  savage  foes. 
This  occurred  about  three  miles  north  of  where  Upper 
Sandusky,  Ohio,  now  stands. 


32  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

Mr.  James  Davis  was  a  substantial  and  excellent  man, 
and  when  a  Presbyterian  Church  was  organized  in  Mead- 
ville,  he  and  Mrs.  Davis  were  among  the  charter-mem- 
bers, and  he  was  made  an  elder,  the  others  being  his  father, 
his  cousin  John  Beatty,  and  Abram  Williams.  Young  Mr. 
Stockton  was  ordained  and  installed  as  pastor  in  June, 
1801,  together  with  the  four  elders  already  named.  The 
session  of  the  First  Church  was  at  that  time  largely  in 
the  family.  It  included  Mr.  Stockton,  the  uncle  of 
Sarah  Stockton,  who  afterwards  became  Mrs.  James  H. 
Davis;  William  and  James  Davis;  and  John  Beatty,  the 
son  of  a  sister  of  Mary  Means. 

Mr.  Bates,  in  his  "History  of  Crawford  County,"  says 
that  the  farm  of  James  Davis  was  the  one  afterward 
owned  and  occupied  by  his  son  James,  who  was  succeeded 
in  its  ownership  and  occupancy  by  his  son,  James  Stewart 
Davis.  But  the  present  occupant  of  the  farm,  Mr. 
James  V.  Davis,  told  me  that  he  has  always  understood 
that  the  first  James  owned  and  lived  upon  a  farm  which 
lay  a  short  distance  south  of  the  one  occupied  by  his 
three  descendants  and  namesakes. 

Mr.  James  Davis  died  July  20,  1819,  in  his  sixtieth 
year,  at  the  home  of  his  son  James.  His  wife  Rachel  had 
preceded  him  to  the  better  land  April  18,  1801,  at  the  age 
of  thirty-nine. 

Their  children  were  four  in  number:  1.  William,  2. 
James,  3.  Mary,  and  4.  Rachel. 

A.  William  Davis  was  born  May  14,  1784,  in  Bucks 
County,  in  all  probability.  He  was  a  lad  of  eleven  when 
the  family  moved  to  the  West.  As  he  approached  man- 
hood, he  went  to  live  in  Meadville.  Mrs.  J.  C.  Cotton 
writes,  "Mr.  John  Reynolds  told  me  that  William  Davis 
was  better  educated  than  most  of  the  business  men  of 
Meadville  were  at  that  time,  so  that  he  was  able  to  teach 
some  of  them  things  they  needed  to  know  for  the  proper 


JAMES    DAVIS 

{Son  of  James) 


n.   JAMES  33 

conduct  of  their  business."  He  was  elected  prothonotary 
of  the  county,  and  served  his  term  of  office.  After  a  time 
he  went  to  Natchez,  Miss.,  to  seek  his  fortune. 

This  very  promising  young  man  did  not  Hve  long  after 
going  South.  An  obituary  in  a  Natchez  paper  of  Sep- 
tember 9,  1809,  says:  "Died,  this  morning,  IVIr.  William 
Davis  late  of  Meadville,  Pa.  Unaffected  in  his  manners, 
of  unshaken  integrity,  with  a  mind  impregnated  with 
useful  knowledge,  this  young  man,  in  a  strange  country, 
remote  from  those  endearments  of  friendship  which  soften 
the  asperity  of  disease,  has  been  numbered  with  the 
dead. 

"This  will  be  read  with  painful  regret  by  those  who 
were  acquainted  with  the  many  amiable  and  endearing 
qualities  of  Mr.  Davis. 

"To  the  parents  of  the  deceased  the  afflictive  character 
of  this  dispensation  of  Providence  is  the  more  peculiarly 
distressing,  from  the  circumstance  of  the  death  of  a 
daughter,  the  wife  of  Frederick  Haymaker,  Esq.,  which 
occurred  about  the  same  period,  on  the  banks  of  the 
Cuyahoga  in  Ohio,  in  her  eighteenth  or  nineteenth  year." 

B.  James  Davis,  the  second  son,  was  born  June  12, 
1786,  and  died  September  3,  1870,  in  his  eighty-fifth  year. 
He  was  a  lad  of  nine  years  when  his  father  moved  to  the 
woods  six  miles  southwest  of  Meadville.  There  he  and 
his  father  evolved  from  the  primeval  forest  one,  and  per- 
haps two  beautiful  farms.  On  October  24,  1811,  he 
married  Mary  Cotton,  daughter  of  Col.  John  Cotton, 
who  was  a  farmer,  and  an  elder  in  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church  of  Meadville.  Both  the  Colonel  and  his  brother 
Hugh  were  elders  of  that  church  at  the  same  time. 

Inheriting  the  military  spirit  which  was  in  the  family, 
James  volunteered  and  served  as  ensign  in  Captain 
Witherow's  company  in  the  War  of  1812.  He  received 
two  land  warrants,  of  sixty  acres  each,  in  recognition  of 


34  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

his  military  services.  He  contracted  the  rheumatism  in 
the  army,  and  suffered  from  it  as  long  as  he  lived. 

Mr.  Davis  was  musically  inclined,  as  were  some  of  his 
children  after  him.  He  taught  "singing  school"  occa- 
sionally; and  as  a  family  grew  up  around  him,  it  was  a 
common  thing  for  them  to  sing  sacred  music  on  Sabbath 
afternoons.  Both  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  were  Presby- 
terians by  birth  and  education.  But  Mr.  Davis  did  not 
become  a  communicant  in  the  church  until  he  was  about 
sixty-five  years  of  age,  when  he  was  converted  at  a  re- 
vival meeting  in  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  which 
was  located  not  far  from  where  he  lived. 

The  children  of  James  and  Mary  Cotton  Davis  were 
seven  in  number:  1.  William,  2.  John  C,  3.  James  S., 
4.  Rachel,  5.  Henry  C,  6.  Robert  S.,  and  7.  Hugh  C. 

1.  William  Davis  was  born  September  7,  1812,  while 
his  father  was  absent  in  the  service  of  his  country,  and 
died  June  20,  1881,  in  his  sixty-ninth  year.  He  grew  up 
on  the  farm,  receiving  a  common  school  education,  learn- 
ing how  to  work,  and  building  up  a  good  physical  con- 
stitution. He  gave  himself  to  Christ,  and  united  with, 
the  First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Meadville  April  23, 
1831. 

It  so  happened  that  a  certain  Miss  Mary  Johnston 
united  with  the  same  church  September  17th  of  the 
same  year.  On  April  1,  1834,  when  he  was  not  yet 
twenty-two  years  of  age,  he  and  Miss  Johnston  were 
married.  She  was  the  daughter  of  Launcelot  Johnston, 
a  substantial  farmer  of  Crawford  County,  who  was  born 
in  Fermanagh  County,  Ireland,  April  16,  1767. 

Divine  Providence,  knowing  what  was  in  the  young 
man,  took  him  to  Meadville  the  next  year,  where  he 
engaged  in  the  shoe  and  leather  business,  still  carrying 
on  the  work  of  self -education.  He  was  as  fine  a  specimen 
of  manhood  as  we  find  among  the  descendants  of  Mary 


I 


WILLIAM    DAVIS,   JR. 


M  R  S.    W  I  L  L  I  A  M    DAVIS,    JR. 


n.   JAMES  35 

Means  and  William  Davis.  Physically,  morally,  and 
intellectually  he  became  a  very  superior  man.  He  was  a 
splendid  type  of  what  men  may  become  if  they  strive, 
as  Mr.  Davis  did,  to  add  spiritual  life  and  culture  to 
natural  advantages.  He  became  one  of  the  most  highly 
respected  and  influential  citizens  of  Meadville,  and  of 
Crawrford  County,  and  so  continued  for  many  years  to  be 
a  leading  moral  and  civic  force  in  the  community.  The 
main  facts  of  his  life  are  summed  up  in  an  obituary,  which 
appeared  in  the  Meadville  Daily  Republican.  It  was 
written  by  Joshua  Douglas,  Esq.,  a  Meadville  attorney: 
"Died,  Thursday,  June  20, 1881,  at  his  residence  in  this 
city,  the  Hon.  William  Davis,  Jr.,  late  Associate  Judge 
of  the  several  courts  of  Crawford  County,  in  the  69th 
year  of  his  age.  The  subject  of  this  sketch  received 
his  training  from  well-informed  and  pious  parents,  and 
the  common  schools  of  his  district,  aided  by  private 
instruction.  In  1835  he  moved  to  Meadville  and  engaged 
in  the  shoe  and  leather  business,  and  continued  success- 
fully in  this  until  1863.  His  public  life  began  in  1840, 
when  he  was  elected  to  the  borough  council,  where  he 
continued  for  three  years.  In  1849  he  was  elected 
burgess  of  the  borough  of  Meadville,  and  held  the  office 
for  three  terms.  He  was  elected  county  treasurer,  on 
the  Whig  ticket,  in  1849,  at  a  time  when  the  Democrats 
held  a  large  majority  in  the  county.  In  1856  he  was 
chosen  one  of  the  trustees  of  Allegheny  College,  and  held 
the  position,  with  credit  to  himself  and  honor  to  the 
institution,  until  his  death.  He  was  elected  Associate 
Judge  in  1863,  again  in  1868,  and  again  in  1873,  and  dis- 
charged the  arduous  duties  of  this  position  with  credit  to 
his  associates,  honor  to  himself,  and  with  eminent  satis- 
faction to  the  members  of  the  bar.  The  new  constitu- 
tion of  Pennsylvania  dispensed  with  the  office  of  associate 
judge  in  this  district.  The  Hon.  Pearson  Church,  the 
present  excellent  President  Judge  of  the   district,   who 


36  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

was  a  member  of  the  Constitutional  Convention  which 
made  the  change  referred  to,  and  who  occupied  the  bench 
one  year  with  Judge  Davis,  in  remarking  upon  the  Hfe 
and  character  of  his  Associate,  regretfully  said  he  missed 
his  Associate  very  much,  that  while  on  the  bench  he  con- 
sulted with  him  frequently,  and  ever  found  him,  although 
a  layman,  to  have  a  strong  and  cultivated  legal  judgment, 
and  a  fine  sense  of  honor  and  justice,  which  were  a  credit 
to  the  bench  and  to  the  profession. 

"Judge  Davis  was  a  member  of  our  first  agricultural 
society,  and  did  much  to  aid  the  valuable  work  of  this  and 
kindred  associations,  in  all  of  which  he  took  an  active 
and  eflBcient  part.  He  has  been,  for  upward  of  twenty 
years,  a  director  of  the  Crawford  County  Mutual  Insur- 
ance Company,  and  for  several  years  its  faithful  treasurer, 
and  at  the  time  of  his  death  was  the  oldest  director  in  the 
company.  He  was  also  for  several  years  one  of  the 
efficient  directors  of  the  Bank  of  Crawford  County.  He 
took  a  deep  interest  in  all  the  educational  institutions 
of  the  county,  and  served  most  efficiently  for  several 
terms  as  School  Director.  At  the  first  meeting  of  the 
Crawford  County  Historical  Society,  Judge  Davis  was 
elected  one  of  its  honorary  members  and  held  this  posi- 
tion while  he  lived. 

"He  united  with  the  Presbyterian  Church  early  in  life, 
and  from  that  time  to  his  death  he  was  a  most  constant 
and  devoted  member.  No  one  was  more  regular  in  at- 
tendance upon  all  the  appointments  of  the  church ;  and  his 
vacant  slip  will  not  soon  be  filled  by  one  so  generally 
loved,  honored,  and  revered  by  the  members  of  this 
society. 

"The  Judge  was  a  man  of  fine  physique  and  most 
excellent  habits.  While  visiting  his  old  friend  James 
Davis  Haymaker,  near  Kent,  Ohio,  last  spring,  he  was 
accidentally  exposed  to  a  severe  storm,  and  came  home 
quite  unwell.     On  a  calm  evening  in  June,  while  his  wife 


JAMES    J.    DAVIS 


MRS.    JAMES     J.    DAVIS 


J     C.    COTTON,    M.D.  MRS.    MARY    D.    COTTON 


n.    JAMES  37 

and  children  and  many  dear  friends  were  standing  by 
his  bedside,  he  passed  away  as  peacefully  and  quietly 
as  a  child  to  its  sleep.  He  died,  as  he  lived,  with  an  un- 
wavering faith  in  his  Divine  Master,  and  an  unswerving 
devotion  to  right  and  duty.  Sustained  and  soothed  by 
an  unfaltering  trust,  he  approached  his  grave  like  one 
that  wraps  the  drapery  of  his  couch  about  him,  and  lies 
down  to  pleasant  dreams." 

On  the  occasion  of  Judge  Davis's  retirement  from  the 
bench,  after  fifteen  years  of  service,  a  banquet  in  his 
honor  was  given  by  the  Meadville  Bar.  Letters  were  read 
from  eminent  men  who  could  not  be  present,  and  speeches 
were  made  by  many  jurists  and  lawyers.  All  united,  as 
with  one  heart  and  voice,  in  speaking  in  highest  terms 
of  praise  of  the  unsullied  record  which  Judge  Davis  had 
made.  He  was  held  up  by  all  as  the  very  model  of  a 
just  judge,  a  courteous  and  affable  oflScial,  and  a  true 
gentleman. 

The  children  of  Judge  and  Mrs.  Davis  were  nine  in 
number:  1.  Mary,  2.  James  J.,  3.  Rachel  A.,  4.  Ellen, 
5.  Emma  E.,  6.  Henry  L.,  7.  William  W.,  8.  Ida,  9. 
Harriet  E. 

1.  Mary  Davis  was  born  May  11,  1835,  and  was  care- 
fully trained  by  one  of  the  best  of  mothers.  How  pleasant 
to  have  a  daughter  say,  "Our  mother  was  a  very  fine 
character,  so  conscientious  and  careful  in  the  performance 
of  every  duty,  so  anxious  to  have  carefully  trained  chil- 
dren, so  that  if  we  did  not  do  well  in  life  it  would  be 
owing  to  no  fault  of  hers."  One  excellent  result  of  this 
careful  training  was  that  Mary  became  a  communicant 
in  the  church  at  an  early  age. 

On  August  15, 1855,  she  became  the  wife  of  John  Calvin 
Cotton,  M.D.  Dr.  Cotton  became  one  of  the  "men  of 
mark"  in  Meadville  and  western  Pennsylvania.  He  was 
born  August  31,  1828,  near  Pulaski,  Lawrence  County, 
Pa.     He  prepared  for  college  in  the  High  School   and 


38  THE   DAYLS   FAMILY 

Academy  near  his  home.  He  was  graduated  from 
Allegheny  College,  Meadville,  and  afterward  in  medicine 
from  the  Cleveland  Medical  College.  He  had  had 
valuable  experience  in  teaching,  having  been  principal 
of  an  academy  at  Darlington,  Pa.,  and  afterward  at 
Whitehall,  Ky.  But  the  "ten  stroke"  in  the  doctor's 
life  was  his  wooing  and  winning  Mary  Davis,  whom  he 
had  learned  to  admire  and  love  while  a  student  at  Mead- 
ville. He  then  settled  in  Meadville  for  his  life-work  — 
performing  successfully  the  duties  of  a  "good  physician," 
and  enjoying  the  honor  and  love  always  cheerfully 
accorded  such  an  one.  He  became  a  member  of  the  First 
Presbyterian  Church  in  1866.  Thus  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Cotton 
became  one  in  the  most  interesting,  delightful,  and  lasting 
of  all  the  ties  that  unite  kindred  souls. 

After  the  battle  of  Gettysburg,  Dr.  Cotton  offered  his 
services  as  a  volunteer  surgeon,  and  was  thus  engaged  for 
a  number  of  weeks.  After  the  war  he  was  appointed 
examining  surgeon  for  pensions,  and  continued  to  hold 
that  position  for  many  years.  In  1870  he  was  appointed 
by  the  Pennsylvania  Medical  Society  censor  for  the  dis- 
trict of  Crawford,  Venango,  Warren,  and  Erie  counties. 
In  1872  he  became  president  of  the  Crawford  County 
Medical  Society,  and  he  was  sent  at  different  times 
as  delegate  to  the  meetings  of  the  American  Medical 
Association. 

Dr.  and  Mrs.  Cotton  have  had  four  children:  1.  Wil- 
liam D.,  2.  Edward  S.,  3.  Marian  E.,  4.  Henry  A. 

(a)  William  Davis  Cotton  was  born  December  23, 
1859.  He  stood  well  in  his  classes  in  the  public  schools, 
and  at  the  Meadville  Academy.  When  a  young  man  he 
went  to  Philadelphia,  and  entered  the  office  of  the  Atlantic 
Refinery  Company,  where  he  has  been  ever  since  —  a 
faithful  and  valued  employee.  For  many  years  he  has 
been  the  cashier  of  the  company.  On  February  4,  1883, 
he    married    Jean   Asay,    of   Philadelphia,    a    winsome 


n.    JAMES  39 

woman,  and  a  true  helpmeet  to  her  husband,  in  their 
hospitable  home  on  Walnut  Lane,  Germantown. 

(6)  Edward  Stewart  Cotton  was  born  August  26, 
1861.  This  was  a  dear  child  who  gladdened  the  hearts 
and  home  of  the  parents  for  a  few  months  only.  He  died 
March  20,  1862.  Mrs.  Cotton  remembers  well  how  hard 
it  was  to  reconcile  themselves  to  the  fact  that  their  child 
would  be  better  off  in  the  Heavenly  Home  than  in  their 
own. 

(c)  Marian  Elizabeth  Cotton,  born  April  23,  1863, 
was  permitted  to  remain  with  her  parents  for  only  two 
years.  She  was  a  happy,  joyous  child,  who,  by  her 
sunny,  winsome  ways,  became  dearer  to  their  hearts  every 
day  until,  on  July  25,  1865,  it  pleased  the  Heavenly 
Father  to  take  her  to  Himself. 

(d)  Henry  Austin  Cotton  was  born  September  27, 
1872.  He  was  a  bright,  good  boy,  and  ranked  high  at 
school  and  college.  He  gave  himself  to  Christ  when 
very  young,  and  united  with  the  church.  He  was  gradu- 
ated from  Allegheny  College  with  the  class  of  1893. 
While  in  college  he  was  made  captain  in  the  military 
department,  and  at  the  time  of  the  Homestead  Riots,  in 
1892,  he  enlisted  as  a  private  in  Co.  B,  15th  Pennsylvania 
Regiment.  He  was  made  orderly  to  Lieutenant-Colonel 
Mechlin,  at  Provost  Guard  headquarters.  At  the  close 
of  this  service,  on  the  recommendation  of  his  Colonel, 
he  was  promoted  to  be  second  lieutenant,  and  received 
his  commission  from  the  Governor  of  the  state.  After 
graduating  from  college  he  entered  a  real  estate  office 
in  Buffalo,  N.  Y.,  where  he  remained  five  years.  He  then 
entered  the  service  of  the  American  Phosphate  Company, 
of  Philadelphia,  and  became  chief  accountant  of  the 
company  at  Mt.  Pleasant,  Tenn.  There  he  made  the 
acquaintance  of  Aimee  Ware  Long,  whom  he  wooed 
and  won.  She  was  a  daughter  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Johnston 
Long,  whose  family  was  one  of  the  prominent  ones  in  that 


40  THE   DAVIS   FA^HLY 

region.  Miss  Long  was  a  very  lovely  young  woman, 
and  as  Harry  Cotton  was  a  very  fine,  promising  young 
man,  the  wedding  which  took  place  at  "Woodlawn," 
July  25,  1900,  was  a  most  brilliant  and  happy  one. 

But  alas!  it  was  not  long  before  Mr.  Cotton's  health 
declined.  Everything  was  done,  that  medical  skill  and 
parental  and  wifely  devotion  could  do,  to  restore  the  health 
of  the  loved  one.  Parents  and  wife  accompanied  him  to 
Denver,  to  Phoenix,  to  El  Paso,  and  other  places,  but  all 
in  vain.  Death  claimed  him  for  his  own.  He  died  at 
El  Paso,  February  12, 1902.  But,  says  one  of  his  friends, 
"his  manly,  honorable  life,  and  his  courage  in  facing  an 
early  death,  are  still  the  pride  and  inspiration  of  those 
who  shared  with  him  his  childhood  games,  his  growing 
successes  in  young  manhood,  and  his  brave  journey  into 
the  Valley  of  the  Shadow  of  Death.  His  all  too  short 
life  was  not  lived  in  vain,  for  'No  life  can  be  pure  in  its 
purpose  and  strong  in  its  strife,  and  all  life  not  be  purer 
and  stronger  thereby.' " 

The  lovely  and  devoted  wife  followed  him  on  the 
twenty-second  of  the  same  month,  leaving  a  son,  Henry 
Austin  Cotton,  Jr.,  but  two  weeks  old.  The  sorrowful 
double  funeral  took  place  at  Meadville  on  the  eighth  of 
April.  Before  he  had  reached  his  second  year  the  beloved 
child,  so  dear  to  the  hearts  of  his  grandparents,  was  not, 
for  God  took  him  also.  All  this  was  an  overwhelming 
sorrow  to  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Cotton.  What  could  have  sus- 
tained them  under  it,  but  the  grace  of  God,  and  the 
blessed  assurance  they  had  of  a  reunion  with  the  loved 
and  lost  in  a  brighter  and  better  world  .'^ 

In  1906  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Cotton  removed  to  German- 
town,  Philadelphia,  to  be  near  their  surviving  son.  On 
their  leaving  Meadville  for  their  own  home,  the  following 
deserved  tribute  was  paid  to  this  noble  couple : 

"Dr.  J.  E.  Cotton  has  for  many  years  been  the  dean  of 
the  medical  practitioners  in  Meadville.     His  practice  has 


11.    JAMES  41 

covered  a  period  of  fifty-one  years,  and  the  value  of  his 
services  as  a  skilful  and  sympathetic  physician  and  friend 
is  kno\\Ti  and  will  be  long  remembered  in  many  homes 
in  this  city  and  vicinity. 

"  With  all  his  busy  practice  of  over  half  a  century,  Dr. 
Cotton  has  always  found  time  to  aid  in  all  matters  of 
public  interest.  He  has  been  a  leader  in  the  advancement 
of  his  profession,  and  in  church  work  both  he  and  Mrs. 
Cotton  have  been  a  force  for  good,  and  an  inspiration  not 
alone  in  their  o^n  church,  but  in  the  entire  community. 
Dr.  Cotton  has  been  for  a  long  term  of  years  an  elder  m 
the  First  Presbyterian  Church,  and  both  he  and  Mrs. 
Cotton  were  among  the  most  earnest  workers  in  the 
union  movement  of  three  years  ago  which  resulted  in  the 
consolidation  of  the  Central  and  First  churches.  Mrs. 
Cotton  has  been  among  the  foremost  in  all  church  mis- 
sionary work,  and  a  prominent  figure  for  many  years  in 
all  the  work  of  the  women  of  the  church. 

"A  beautiful  expression  of  the  esteem  in  which  both  are 
held  in  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  was  given  at  a 
meeting  held  recently  at  which  appropriate  resolutions 
were  unanimously  adopted,  and  fitting  remarks  were 
made  by  a  large  number  of  the  members. 

"Though  ripening  in  years,  both  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Cotton 
are  in  excellent  health.  They  were  attended  to  the  train 
by  a  large  number  of  friends,  and  they  carry  with  them 
to  their  new  home  the  esteem  and  best  wishes  of  the  entire 
community  in  which  they  have  so  long  resided." 

An  instance  of  the  public  spirit  and  Christian  earnest- 
ness of  Mrs.  Cotton  was  exhibited  in  her  laboring,  with 
two  others,  to  have  Meadville  City  Hospital  established. 
Its  management  has  been  wise  and  successful,  and  it  has 
been  a  most  useful  institution.  The  good  it  is  doing  has 
continued  to  interest  Mrs.  Cotton,  and  to  call  forth  her 
sympathy  and  help. 

This  descendant  of  Mary  Means,  and  daughter  of  Mary 


42  THE   DAVIS    FAMILY 

Johnston,  seems  to  have  inherited  the  best  that  was  in 
the  two  Marys,  for  she  is  indeed  a  woman  of  rare  sym- 
pathy, vivacity  of  manner,  kindness  of  heart,  and  nobility 
of  spirit.  Her  hospitality  would  grace  a  mansion  in  the 
"sunny  South,"  as  the  writer  knows  from  happy  experi- 
ence. She  and  her  good  husband  are  the  kind  of  people 
who  never  grow  old  —  who,  when  "ripening  in  years," 
enjoy  with  the  young  around  them  all  the  innocent 
pleasures  of  life,  and  who,  when  the  Father  calls  them  to 
come  up  higher,  "slip  awa',"  without  a  regret,  and  with- 
out a  fear. 

2.  James  Johnston  Davis  was  born  in  Meadville, 
Pa.,  January  26,  1837.  He  was  educated,  he  says,  in  the 
common  schools  of  his  native  town.  May  we  not  add 
that  he  received  much  the  more  important  and  precious 
part  of  his  education  in  the  home  presided  over  by  William 
and  Mary  Johnston  Davis  .'^  After  the  good  old  way, 
he  learned  a  trade  —  that  of  carpenter  and  stair  builder; 
and  he  followed  the  same  for  a  number  of  years.  He 
united  with  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  in  1857.  In 
May,  1858,  he  went  to  Kansas,  traveling  by  stage  from 
Meadville  to  Pittsburg,  and  by  steamboat  from  Pitts- 
burg to  St.  Louis  and  Leavenworth.  This  visit  was 
made  during  the  exciting  conflict  which  was  to  decide 
whether  Kansas  would  be  a  free  or  a  slave  state.  After 
his  return  Mr.  Davis  became  chief  clerk  in  the  large  shops 
of  the  A.  &  G.  W.  R.  R.  Company.  Resigning  from  this 
after  six  years,  he  engaged  in  the  coal  business  for  a  num- 
ber of  years.  During  this  time  Mr.  Davis  married, 
September  6, 1865,  at  Wheeling,  W.  Va.,MARY  Carnahan, 
a  teacher  in  the  Meadville  Academy.  She  died,  leaving 
one  daughter,  Harriet  H.  Davis,  who  is  now  Mrs. 
Ernest  E.  Baldwin,  of  New  York.  Mrs.  Davis  was  a  fine 
Christian  character,  exceptionally  bright  and  of  winning 
manner. 

Mr.  Davis  twice  responded  to  the  Governor's  call  for 


n.   JAMES  43 

state  troops  during  the  Civil  War.  He  saw  no  active 
service  except  as  Sergeant  in  Company  F,  58th  Penn- 
sylvania Regiment,  under  Col.  Geo.  H.  Bemis,  when  that 
regiment  was  called  into  Ohio  to  assist  in  capturing 
Morgan's  cavalry  then  making  its  famous  raid  in  Indiana 
and  Ohio,  as  a  diversion  in  favor  of  Lee's  army,  which 
had  entered  Pennsylvania. 

While  living  at  Meadville,  Mr.  Davis  served  one  term 
in  the  City  Council.  He  was  a  trustee  of  the  City 
Library  for  many  years;  and  for  about  twelve  years  he 
served  as  director  of  the  People's  Savings  Bank. 

On  June  25,  1868,  Mr.  Davis  married  Frances 
J.  Matthews  of  Pulaski,  Pa.  Their  children  were :  1. 
Edith,  2.  Isabelle  M.,  3.  Frances  M.,  and  4.  Mat- 
thews E. 

In  May,  1883,  he  moved  to  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  and  assumed 
the  management  of  the  St.  Louis  Gas  Fuel  and  Power 
Company.  He  was  a  director  of  the  company,  and  also 
its  secretary  and  treasurer. 

In  1890  Mr.  Davis  moved  to  New  York,  and  entered 
into  business.  He  was  appointed  a  Receiver  in  Bank- 
ruptcy for  a  large  foundry  company.  On  the  final  settle- 
ment of  this  receivership,  Judge  Edward  Thomas  ex- 
pressed his  special  satisfaction  with  Mr.  Davis's  services 
and  later  appointed  him  to  another  important  receiver- 
ship, which  he  had  to  decline  on  account  of  ill  health. 

Mr.  Davis  still  resides  in  New  York.  In  national 
politics  he  has  always  been  a  Republican,  having  cast 
his  first  vote  for  Abraham  Lincoln.  He  and  all  his  family 
are  members  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Parkhurst  being  their  pastor. 

Mrs.  Davis  is  the  daughter  of  David  and  Permelia  H. 
Matthews  of  Pulaski,  Mercer  County,  Pa.  Her  ancestors 
lived  at  New  Haven,  Conn.,  and  some  of  them  served  in 
the  Continental  army  during  the  Revolutionary  War. 

(a)  Harriet  Hezlep  Davis,  daughter  of  James  J.  and 


44  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

Mary  Carnahan  Davis,  was  educated  in  Meadville,  and 
at  Miss  Bonnaye's  School  in  Philadelphia.  She  has  lived 
successively  in  Meadville,  St.  Louis,  Philadelphia,  and 
New  York  City.  She  is  the  wife  of  Ernest  E.  Baldwin, 
a  New  York  attorney.  Mr.  Baldwin  is  the  son  of  the  late 
Judge  George  E.  Baldwin,  of  Canton,  O.,  a  neighbor  and 
personal  friend  of  former  President  McKinley.  Judge 
Baldwin  was  held  in  the  highest  estimation  by  the  legal 
profession  and  citizens  of  Canton,  and  honored  by  Presi- 
dent McKinley  with  an  important  oflSce  abroad,  that  of 
Consul  at  Dresden,  Germany. 

Mr.  E.  E,  Baldwin  was  appointed  First  Assistant 
United  States  District  Attorney  for  New  York,  and  served 
in  that  capacity  for  about  seven  years,  when  he  resigned 
and  resumed  the  private  practice  of  the  law. 

Mrs.  Baldwin  is  a  lady  of  beautiful  character,  possesses 
sound  judgment,  and  evinces  great  loyalty  to  her  kindred. 
She  presides,  with  dignity  and  grace,  over  a  fine  home 
near  Central  Park. 

(6)  Of  the  children  of  Mrs.  Frances  J.  Davis,  Edith 
was  born  in  1870,  and  lived  until  1886,  when  she  passed 
away  from  earth  and  loved  ones. 

(c)  IsABELLE  M.  Davis  was  bom  March  21,  1872,  and 
was  educated  in  Meadville,  St.  Louis,  and  New  York, 
specializing  in  art,  which  study  she  pursued  under  Mr. 
Henry  Mosler  and  at  the  Art  Students'  League.  Her 
illustrations  have  appeared  in  several  American  maga- 
zines, and  her  exquisite  miniatures  have  been  exhibited  at 
the  Miniature  Exhibition  in  New  York  City.  She  was 
married,  June  5,  1907,  to  Herbert  W.  Seymour,  son  of 
Thomas  H.  and  Elizabeth  Kirby  Seymour,  of  Elizabeth, 
N.  J.  He  served  six  months  in  the  Spanish-American 
War.  His  father,  at  the  beginning  of  the  Civil  War, 
raised  a  company  in  New  York  and  served  as  Captain 
until  its  close. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Herbert  Seymour  are  living  in  Baltimore, 


JAMES    P.    HASSLER,    M.D.  MRS.    JAMES    P.    HASSLER 


WILLIAM    W.    DAVIS  MRS.    WILLIAM    W.    DAVIS 


n.    JAMES  45 

where  Mr.  Seymour  is  manager  of  the  Baltimore  branch 
of  the  Crane  Manufacturing  Company  of  Chicago. 

They  have  two  children:  1.  Herbert  Crane  Seymour 
and  2.  IVIarion  Davis  Seymour,  both  born  in  Washington. 

(d)  Frances  Marion  Davis  was  born  May  31,  1880, 
and  died  May  29,  1902.  One  who  knew  her  well  says  of 
this  dear  young  lady,  "She  combined  a  distinct  individu- 
ality of  thought  and  expression  with  a  rare  sweetness  and 
gentleness;  and  all  life  is  sweeter  and  stronger  because 
she  still  lives  in  the  hearts  of  those  who  loved  her." 

(e)  Matthews  Erastus  Davis  was  graduated  from 
the  Webb  Academy  in  New  York,  having  taken  a  full 
course  in  naval  architecture  and  marine  engineering. 
Since  graduation  he  has  been  employed  in  the  practice 
of  his  chosen  profession  with  the  New  York  Ship  Building 
Company  at  South  Camden,  N.  J.  As  a  boy  he  was 
studious,  ambitious,  and  independent  in  character,  and 
he  has  developed  into  a  splendid  man.  He  married  Sara 
Ladd,  daughter  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Samuel  T.  Ladd,  of 
Woodbury,  N.  J.,  who  is  a  noble  wife  and  has  won  a 
warm  place  in  the  hearts  of  her  husband's  family. 

3.  Rachel  Amanda  Davis  was  born  January  3,  1839. 
When  a  child  she  had  scarlet  fever,  and  never  fully 
recovered  from  the  effects  of  it.  It  developed  into  con- 
sumption, which  proved  fatal  in  her  fifteenth  year. 
Amanda  was  very  bright  for  her  age  and  gave  pleasing 
evidence  of  early  piety.  Her  intimate  school  friend  was 
Esther  Woodruff,  who  afterward  became  Mrs.  Joseph 
H.  Davis. 

4.  Ellen  Davis  was  born  December  19,  1840.  She 
was  educated  in  the  schools  of  Meadville.  But  it  was, 
no  doubt,  owing  to  home  influences  that  she  became  a 
superior  woman  and  the  charming  wife  of  a  superior  man. 
She  was  married  to  James  Power  Hassler,  of  Fayette 
City,  Pa.,  in  the  "old  home,"  August  21,  1860.  The  Rev. 
John  V.  Reynolds  was  the  ofiBciating  minister.     She  had 


46  THE   DAVIS    FAMILY 

a  noble  spirit,  which  made  her  an  untiring  worker  in  her 
home,  in  her  church,  and  in  the  community.  She  was 
ever  ready  to  do  her  part,  and  often  to  do  more  than  she 
had  the  strength  for  doing.  Her  house  at  Cochranton 
was  always  open  to  ministers  and  to  church  gatherings. 
In  Meadville  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Hassler  entertained  much, 
and  loved  to  have  about  them  intelligent  and  cultured 
people.  Despite  the  failing  health  of  her  last  years,  she 
never  quite  lost  her  eager  interest  in  life,  nor  her  buoyant, 
even  merry  spirits.  She  had  a  fine  mind,  a  keen  sense  of 
humor,  and  a  sympathetic  and  winning  personality.  Her 
low,  sweet  voice  and  her  rippling,  contagious  laughter  are 
indissolubly  associated  with  one's  thought  of  her.  Al- 
though much  of  her  time  and  strength  had  to  be  given  to 
her  large  family,  she  always  found  a  way  to  keep  in  touch 
with  and  generally  to  lead  many  outside  activities  in 
church  and  community  life.  Her  natural  social  instincts 
and  her  personal  charm  would  have  made  her  a  leader 
in  any  environment.  This  temperament,  combined  with 
real  strength  of  character,  and  the  habit  of  always  passing 
on  all  the  pleasant  things  she  heard  about  others,  made 
the  path  she  trod  very  sunny  and  bright,  however  in- 
volved by  care  her  intimate  life  may  have  been. 

Her  husband,  James  P.  Hassler,  was  born  February  13, 
1835,  at  Mt.  Pleasant,  Westmoreland  County,  Pa.  He 
entered  Allegheny  College  at  the  age  of  seventeen,  and 
was  graduated  there  in  1856.  After  teaching  school  a  few 
years  in  Kentucky  and  Michigan,  he  began  the  study 
of  medicine  with  Dr.  J.  C.  Cotton,  in  Meadville,  and  was 
graduated  from  the  Medical  Department  of  the  Univer- 
sity of  Michigan  in  1864.  He  practised  his  profession 
in  and  around  Cochranton,  Crawford  County,  Pa.,  for 
twenty-four  years,  with  great  success,  and  in  1889  he 
removed  to  Meadville  where  he  spent  the  remainder  of 
his  life,  earnestly  and  successfully  engaged  in  the  practice 
of  medicine.     He  was  a  consistent  and  faithful  member 


II.    JAMES  47 

of  the  church  from  early  Hfe.  In  poHtics  he  was  a  War 
Democrat  and  independent.  At  the  time  of  his  decease 
the  Mcadville  Republican  said:  "Dr.  Hassler  was  deeply 
interested  in  educational  affairs,  and  served  for  some 
fifteen  years  as  a  member  of  the  Cochranton  School 
Board,  and  for  a  much  longer  term  as  a  member  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  Allegheny  College.  In  his  church 
affiliations  Dr.  Hassler  was  a  Methodist,  being  an  earnest 
and  consistent  member  of  the  First  Church.  He  was  an 
earnest,  thoughtful,  big-hearted,  generous  man,  a  friend 
of  the  poor,  prompt  to  answer  the  call  of  distress.  He 
was  an  honor  to  his  profession,  and  beloved  by  all  who 
knew  him.  He  was  of  a  sunny  disposition,  a  polished 
gentleman,  and  had  always  a  smile  and  a  kind  word  for  all 
he  met.     He  will  be  missed  by  all  who  knew  him." 

Dr.  Hassler  had  a  fine  mind,  and,  having  been  well 
trained,  he  wrote  many  an  article  for  the  periodical  press. 

The  children  of  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Hassler  were  as  follows: 
1.  Mary  E.,  2.  Sarah  A.,  3.  Frank  P.,  4.  Emma  F., 
5.  Anna  B.,  6.  An  infant  son,  7.  Harriet  E.,  8.  William 
D.,  9.  James  H.,  10.  Eleanor  B. 

All  but  the  first  two  were  born  at  Cochranton.  The 
first  two  children  died  of  diphtheria,  Mary,  when  she  was 
not  three  years  old,  and  Sarah,  when  she  was  about  ten 
months  old.  The  sixth  child,  a  son,  died  when  not  yet 
named,  April  10,  1872.  The  seven  still  living  are  as 
follows : 

(a)  Frank  Power  Hassler  was  born  November  13, 
1864.  He  was  educated  in  the  public  schools  of  Cochran- 
ton and  Meadville,  and  at  Allegheny  College,  and  became 
a  newspaper  man.  He  has  been  on  the  editorial  staff  of 
the  Chicago  Inter-Ocean  for  many  years.  He  has  been 
married  twice  —  first  to  Annie  A.  Hart,  of  Alliance,  O., 
who  died  at  the  home  of  Dr.  Hassler,  August  7,  1892. 
They  had  been  living  in  Florida,  but  ill  health  compelled 
her  to  come  North,  that  she  might  be  under  the  care  of 


48  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

Dr.  Hassler,  in  whose  home  everything  that  skill  and 
love  could  do  was  done  for  her,  but  all  was  of  no  avail. 
Mrs.  Frank  Hassler  was  loved  by  all  who  knew  her,  and 
admired  for  her  sweet  disposition  and  beautiful  womanly 
characteristics.  Her  sufiFerings  in  her  last  illness  were 
borne  with  Christian  patience  and  resignation,  and  to  her, 
death  came  as  a  sweet  relief,  as  a  new  birth  into  life 
eternal. 

In  November,  1895,  Mr.  Hassler  married  Julia  Rogers, 
a  bright  and  beautiful  daughter  of  Mrs.  Mary  Rogers,  of 
Nashville,  Tenn.  Mr.  Hassler  was  described  as  "the 
well-known,  gifted,  and  popular  newspaper  man,  connected 
with  the  Chicago  Inter-Ocean." 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hassler  have  two  children:  1.  Frank 
Rogers,  born  December  2,  1896,  and  2.  Mary  Ellen, 
born  March  1,  1904. 

(6)  Emma  Florence  Hassler  was  born  February  8, 
1867.  She  was  educated  in  the  public  schools  of  Mead- 
ville,  at  Wells  College,  Aurora,  N.  Y.,  and  at  the  Pennsyl- 
vania College  for  Women,  Pittsburg.  She  is  living  in 
Mobile,  Ala.,  to  be  with  her  youngest  sister  Eleanor, 
who,  her  health  not  being  very  good,  is  more  comfortable 
in  the  South.  Miss  Hassler  is  a  member  of  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church,  and  is  an  intelligent  and  cultured  lady 
of  very  pleasing  manners.  In  her  studies,  she  has  made 
a  specialty  of  music  in  which  she  is  quite  proficient. 

(c)  Anna  Belle  Hassler  was  born  September  28, 
1870.  She  received  her  education  in  the  public  schools, 
at  Allegheny  College,  and  at  the  Pennsylvania  College 
for  Women  at  Pittsburg.  On  October  14,  1896,  she  was 
married  to  Mr.  Per  Lee  Welty,  of  a  prominent  family 
in  Canton,  Ohio.  They  had  two  sons,  both  born  in  Can- 
ton: 1.  James  Allman,  August  9,  1897,  and  2.  Walter 
Hassler,  August  7,  1899.  Mrs.  Welty  is  now  living  at 
Meadville  in  the  "old  home"  (of  Judge  Wm.  Davis)  on 
Walnut  Street.     She  is  an  earnest  Christian  and  a  lovely 


n.   JAMES  49 

woman,  devoted  to  her  two  boys.  The  First  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  of  Meadville  is  her  church.  She  is  a 
most  unselfish  person,  ready  for  every  good  word  and  work, 
as  the  writer  of  this  Family  Record  can  testify,  he  having 
enlisted  the  services  of  Mrs.  Welty  as  often  as  of  any  one 
else  in  our  family  connection,  in  searching  for  necessary 
information. 

(d)  Hakriet  Elizabeth  Hassler  was  born  March  1, 
1874.  She  was  graduated  from  the  Meadville  High 
School  in  1895,  and  from' the  Pratt  Institute  of  Brooklyn, 
N.  Y.,  in  1898,  where  she  had  taken  a  full  course  in  Library 
Work.  She  was  then  for  a  time  in  the  Public  Library  of 
Buffalo,  and  later  in  the  Carnegie  Library  at  Pittsburg. 
It  was  here  that  Miss  Hassler  conceived  the  idea  of  in- 
teresting children  in  books  and  reading.  Called  from 
thence  to  the  City  Library  of  Portland,  Ore.,  she  gave  her- 
self up  to  the  work  of  interesting  and  instructing  the 
thirty-six  hundred  children  of  the  public  schools,  by 
means  of  talks  and  stories,  exhibits  and  books.  She  was 
invited  to  lecture  on  this  subject  in  various  cities.  After 
five  years  of  service  in  Portland  she  was  called  to  New 
York  City  where  she  is  engaged  in  the  same  work  in  con- 
nection with  a  group  of  ten  or  more  libraries.  Miss 
Hassler  is  exceptionally  gifted  for  her  chosen  work,  and 
being  a  devoted  Christian  and  member  of  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church,  and  as  her  work  often  carries  her  into 
the  slums  of  the  great  city,  she  has  a  splendid  opportunity 
for  doing  a  grand  work  for  humanity,  so  that  we  all  may 
be  proud  of  our  kinswoman,  and  call  her  by  the  name  given 
to  her  by  the  children  of  Portland,  "Our  dear  Miss 
Hassler." 

(e)  William  Davis  Hassler  was  born  May  7,  1877. 
He  received  his  education  in  the  public  schools,  and  was 
graduated  from  the  Meadville  Commercial  College  in  the 
class  of  1896.  He  then  became  Assistant  Manager  of  the 
Cudahy  Packing  Company  in  New  York  City.     He  is  now 


50  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

doing  a  good  business  in  that  city  in  commercial  photog- 
raphy. On  June  23,  1904,  he  married  Ethel  Gray 
Magaw,  daughter  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Leon  Chappotin 
Magaw  of  Meadville.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hassler  have  a  son, 
William  Gray  Hassler,  born  September  1,  1906.  They 
are  members  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 

(/)  James  Herman  Hassler  was  born  June  25,  1881. 
He  was  graduated  from  Allegheny  College  in  1905.  He 
chose  for  his  profession  that  of  civil  engineering.  He  was 
in  the  service  of  the  Northern  Pacific  and  other  com- 
panies. He  then  went  to  Alaska,  where  he  spent  three 
years.  He  was  an  affectionate  and  devoted  son  and 
brother,  which  is  a  sure  token  of  a  beautiful  manly 
character. 

(g)  Eleanor  Bushnell  Hassler  was  born  February 
14,  1885.  She  is  a  beautiful  and  gifted  girl,  whose  want 
of  perfect  health  is  a  sorrow  to  the  many  friends  who  love 
her.  She  resides  in  the  South,  where  she  enjoys  better 
health  than  in  the  North.  She  is  accompanied  by  her 
devoted  sister  Emma.  They  seem  to  make  Mobile  their 
headquarters  and  favorite  home,  while  they  are  often 
at  other  points  along  our  southern  coast.  Eleanor  has 
been  confirmed  in  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in 
Mobile. 

5.  Emma  Evalina  Davis  is  a  fine  specimen  of  the 
physical  perfection,  the  mental  alertness,  and  the  womanly 
sweetness  characteristic  of  the  daughters  of  Judge  and  Mrs. 
William  Davis.  She  is  the  "free  lance  of  the  family," 
and  has  a  decided  individuality.  She  is  a  good  traveler, 
a  good  visitor,  and  a  good  hostess.  She  is  welcomed  where- 
ever  she  goes,  for  she  is  bright  and  cheery,  full  of  humor, 
fond  of  good  stories,  and  ready  for  any  occasion  that 
arises.  She  would  grace  a  palace  and  is  a  type  of  Ameri- 
can nobility.  She  proved  her  nobleness  by  sacrificing 
her  own  interests,  and  taking  charge  of  the  two  children 
of  her  brother,  Henry  L.  Davis,  and  remaining  with  them 


MRS.  HENRY  L.  DAVIS^      MRS.  HENRY  L.  DAVIS 


EMMA  E.  DAVIS 


HENRY  L.  DAVIS 


n.    JAMES  51 

for  many  years.  She  has  resided  successively  in  Mead- 
ville,  Philadelphia,  and  New  York.  Miss  Davis  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Fifth  Avenue  Presbyterian  Church,  and  takes 
an  active  interest  in  the  work  of  that  great  church,  and 
also  in  the  affairs  of  the  D.  A.  R.,  of  which  patriotic 
society  she  is  an  honored  member.  A  host  of  relatives 
and  friends  do  homage  to  the  "Duchess,"  as  she  is  called 
by  her  friends.  She  is  at  home  in  the  Hotel  Majestic, 
New  York  City. 

6.  Henry  L.  Davis,  son  of  William  and  Mary  John- 
ston Davis,  was  born  at  Meadville,  May  22,  1846.  He 
was  educated  in  the  common  schools  of  Meadville  and 
for  some  time  at  Allegheny  College. 

He  commenced  his  business  life  as  a  bookkeeper  in  the 
general  offices  of  the  A.  &  G.  W.  R.R.  Company,  then 
located  at  Meadville.  After  a  few  months'  service  he 
was  made  bookkeeper  in  the  Bank  of  Crawford  County, 
where  he  continued  until  1866,  when  he  accepted  a 
similar  position  in  the  Oil  City  Savings  Bank.  He  united 
with  the  First  Presbyterian  Church,  Oil  City,  Pa.,  in  1867, 
and  was  ordained  a  Ruling  Elder  in  1872.  In  1871  the 
Oil  City  Trust  Company  was  organized,  and  he  was 
chosen  its  cashier.  He  resigned  this  position,  in  the  spring 
of  1873,  to  enter  the  office  of  Warden,  Frew  &  Co.,  Phila- 
delphia, and  take  special  management  of  the  Atlantic 
Refining  Company  and  the  Atlantic  Petroleum  Storage 
Company,  all  engaged  in  the  export  oil  trade.  He  be- 
came the  vice-president  of  the  Atlantic  Refining  Company 
and  afterward  its  active  responsible  head  until  his 
resignation  in  October,  1889.  The  capacity  of  the 
works  increased  over  tenfold  during  his  management. 

He  was  for  years  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Directors 
of  the  United  Gas  Improvement  Company,  the  Spring 
Garden  Fire  Insurance  Company,  the  Penn  Mutual  Life 
Insurance  Company,  and  is  now  a  director  of  the  German- 
town  Trust  Company,  a  manager  of  the  Germantown 


52  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

Hospital,  a  Director  of  the  Presbyterian  Board  of  Min- 
isterial Relief,  and  member  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of 
Lincoln  University. 

Soon  after  removing  to  Philadelphia  he  became  iden- 
tified with  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  on  Washington 
Square,  and  in  November,  1879,  was  made  a  Ruling  Elder 
in  that  church.  In  1882  he  removed  to  Germantown, 
where  he  still  resides.  He  united  with  the  Second  Pres- 
byterian Church  and  since  1888  has  been  one  of  its 
Elders. 

He  was  married  in  1869  to  Eleanor  Gray  Bushnell, 
daughter  of  Daniel  Bushnell  and  Eleanor  Gray  Bushnell 
of  Pittsburg,  Pa.,  by  whom  he  has  two  children,  Henry 
Lamont  Davis  and  Eleanor  Bushnell  Davis.  Mrs. 
Davis  died  May  30,  1874.  She  was  a  rare  Christian 
character,  bright  and  sunny,  and  greatly  beloved  by  all 
who  knew  her.  Mr.  Davis  married  Martha  Milliken 
Bodine  in  1890.  She  was  a  daughter  of  Samuel  T.  Bodine 
and  Louisa  Milliken  Bodine  of  Philadelphia.  She  died 
August  25,  1894.     She  was  a  noble,  Christian  woman. 

Mr.  Davis  served  about  two  months  in  the  Emergency 
State  Militia  called  out  by  the  Governor  when  General 
Lee's  army  invaded  Pennsylvania  in  the  summer  of  1863. 
He  was  a  member  of  Company  F  of  the  58th  Pennsylvania 
Regiment  under  Col.  George  H.  Bemis.  The  regiment 
saw  no  active  service  except  in  assisting  in  heading  off 
the  Morgan  raid  in  Ohio. 

Henry  L.  Davis  is  a  type  of  what  a  well-born,  carefully 
trained,  conscientious  and  energetic  American  youth  may 
become.  The  responsible  positions  he  has  held,  the 
oflBces  of  trust  that  are  thrust  upon  him,  the  honor  in 
which  he  is  held,  and  the  universal  love  of  his  kindred 
and  friends  mark  him  as  a  man  among  men.  In  a  brief 
sketch  I  cannot  do  more  than  hint  at  the  physical  per- 
fection, the  gentlemanly  refinement,  the  spiritual  culture 
and  high  moral  tone,  the  sympathetic  tenderness,  and 


^ 


n.   JAMES  53 

soulful  philanthropy,  of  this  much-loved  man,  whom  to 
know  is  a  benediction. 

(a)  Henry  Lamont  Davis  was  born  in  Oil  City,  Pa,, 
September  15,  1870.  He  attended  school  in  Meadville 
and  in  Philadelphia;  was  graduated  from  the  German- 
to\NTi  Academy  in  1888,  and  then  spent  three  years  at 
Haverford  College.  He  left  college  in  his  junior  year  to 
enjoy  the  advantages  of  a  tour  in  Europe.  Upon  his 
return  he  spent  a  year  in  the  employment  of  the  Alex- 
ander Lumber  Company  in  West  Virginia.  He  next 
spent  a  year  with  a  decorating  firm  in  St.  Louis.  At 
that  time  he  met  Miss  Willie  Webb,  who  is  now  Mrs. 
Henry  L.  Davis.  She  was  the  daughter  of  William  Webb, 
M.D.,  from  North  Carolina,  and  Mary  Castleman,  from 
Kentucky,  residents  of  St.  Louis.  She  is  related,  through 
her  mother,  to  the  Breckinridges,  Cabells,  and  other 
distinguished  Kentucky  families.  The  lovers  of  romance 
will  be  interested  in  the  fact  that  Mrs.  Willie  Davis  is  a 
direct  descendant  of  "Pocahontas"  and  John  Rolfe,  one 
of  the  founders  of  Virginia.  Mr.  Davis  and  Miss  Webb 
were  married  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  John  Cannon,  of  the  Grand 
Avenue  Presbyterian  Church,  St.  Louis,  October  17,  1896. 
Mr.  Davis  then  engaged  for  some  time  in  the  wholesale 
lumber  business,  afterward  in  the  retail  trade.  But  for 
several  years  past  he  has  lived  in  Germantown,  assisting 
his  father  in  looking  after  his  business  interests. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  have  two  lovely  children:  Eleanor 
BusHNELL  Davis,  born  August  28,  1898,  and  IVL^ry 
Castlerian  Davis,  born  March  4,  1907.  The  family 
residence  is  on  W.  Stafford  Street,  Germantown,  and 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  are  members  of  the  Second  Presby- 
terian Church. 

Inheriting  sound  principles  and  lofty  ideals,  Mr.  Harry 
Davis's  overflowing  vivacity  and  activity  find  an  outlet  in 
such  good  works  as  superintending  a  Mission  Sunday 
School,  joining  in  Philadelphia  Rescue  Band  work,  labor- 


54  THE    DAVIS   FAI^HLY 

ing  to  reform  the  politics  of  the  city,  and  in  helping  to 
make  Pennsylvania  a  local-option  state. 

Mrs.  Davis  has  a  remarkably  serene  and  sunny  dis- 
position, and  possesses  the  charming  trait  of  natural- 
ness, so  that  she  has  a  happy  way  of  approaching  life, 
and,  being  possessed  of  good  sense  and  a  fine  sense  of 
humor,  she  is  admired  and  loved  by  all  who  know  her. 

(b)  Eleanor  Bushnell  Davis  was  born  in  Philadel- 
phia May  30,  1874,  and  was  named  after  her  mother. 
She  was  educated  at  Miss  Mary  Stevens'  School  in  Ger- 
mantown,  and  at  Bishopthorpe  School,  Bethlehem,  Pa., 
being  graduated  from  the  latter  in  1892.  She  became  a 
member  of  the  Second  Presbyterian  Church,  Germantown, 
in  1890.  On  June  16,  1900,  she  was  married  to  Morris 
Llewellyn  Cooke,  by  her  pastor,  the  Rev.  C.  P.  H. 
Nason. 

Mr.  Cooke  was  born  May  11,  1872,  at  Carlisle,  Pa.,  the 
son  of  William  Harvey  Cooke,  M.D.,  and  Elizabeth 
Richmond  Marsden  Cooke.  His  father  came  of  Welsh- 
Quaker  stock,  of  Delaware  County,  Pa.  He  was  named 
after  Morris  Llewellyn,  who  came  to  this  country  in  1683, 
and  became  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Haverford  Meeting. 
The  Llewellyn  house,  built  in  1691,  is  still  standing  at 
Haverford,  with  M.  Llewellyn's  initials,  and  those  of  his 
wife,  in  the  wall,  with  the  date.  His  mother  was  of 
Scotch-Irish  Presbyterian  stock,  and  was  of  the  Grier 
family  which  has  furnished  so  many  ministers  to  the 
Presbyterian  Church  in  this  country.  One  of  them  was  a 
pastor  at  one  time  of  the  old  Tinicum  Church  where  our 
forefathers  worshiped. 

Mr.  Cooke  was  educated  at  Ulrich's  School  and  Lehigh 
University,  Bethlehem,  Pa.,  being  graduated  from  the 
University,  as  a  mechanical  engineer,  in  1895. 

During  the  war  with  Spain  in  1898,  Mr.  Cooke  served 
as  assistant  engineer  on  the  United  States  S.  S.  Aliantano- 
moh  and  Lancaster,  and  was  chief  engineer  on  the  United 


n.    J.\MES  55 

States  S.  S.  Eagle.  He  has  held  various  positions  con- 
nected with  the  book-making  industries.  He  is  a  promi- 
nent member  of  the  American  Society  of  Mechanical 
Engineers,  and  as  an  expert  in  Industrial  Management 
he  was  selected  by  the  Carnegie  Foundation  for  the 
Advancement  of  Teaching  to  visit  eight  of  the  leading 
universities  and  colleges  of  this  country  and  Canada, 
make  investigations,  and  report  on  the  best  methods  of 
management  on  the  financial  and  business  side  of  such 
institutions.  Mr.  Cooke's  able  report  has  commanded 
the  attention  of  the  leading  educators  in  this  and  other 
countries.  He  was  recently  summoned  to  the  "\Miite 
House  by  President  Taft  for  a  consultation  concerning 
its  management. 

In  recent  years  Mr.  Cooke  has  taken  an  active  part  in 
civic  reform  movements  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia.  He 
is  a  member  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 

Mrs.  Cooke,  favored  by  heredity,  education,  and  en- 
vironment, has  developed  a  charming  personality.  For 
years  she  has  been  the  efficient  mistress  of  her  father's 
hospitable  home,  as  well  as  the  inspiration  of  her  culture- 
loving  husband. 

Happy  the  couple  whose  tastes  and  acti\'ities  so  beau- 
tifully coincide!  They  admire  and  cultivate  the  best  in 
life.  They  are  fascinated  by  the  beauties  of  nature, 
art,  and  literature.  They  are  loving  disciples  of  the  true, 
the  beautiful,  and  the  good. 

7.  Willla:m  W.  DA^^5,  son  of  William  and  Mary 
Johnston  Davis,  was  born  December  5,  1848.  He  re- 
ceived his  education  in  the  public  schools,  at  Allegheny 
College,  and  at  the  Meadville  Commercial  College.  In 
January,  1869,  he  went  into  the  service  of  the  Titus\"ille 
Savings  Bank  as  bookkeeper.  In  1871  he  was  transferred 
to  the  Citizens'  Bank  as  teller.  In  June,  1874,  he  organ- 
ized the  Jamestown  Banking  Company,  at  Jamestown, 
Pa.,  and  occupied  the  position  of  cashier  for  nine  years. 


56  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

He  was  then  induced  to  return  to  the  oil  country  in  the 
service  of  the  Commercial  Bank  of  Titusville.  On  account 
of  impaired  health  he  left  the  banking  business  in  1886 
and  entered  the  service  of  the  Mahoning  Gas  Company, 
at  Youngstown,  Ohio,  where  he  remained  two  years. 
He  then  went  to  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  and  engaged  in  the 
manufacture  of  leaded  and  stained  glass  for  churches  and 
other  public  and  private  buildings. 

In  1874  he  married  Mary  Frances  Tefft  who  was  an 
excellent  wife  and  admirable  woman.  She  died  in  1898. 
One  who  knew  her  well  thus  wrote  to  me  of  her:  Mrs. 
Wm.  W.  Davis  had  an  unusually  bright  and  winning  per- 
sonality which  endeared  her  to  the  entire  connection, 
especially  to  her  many  nieces  and  nephews,  who,  as 
children,  counted  greatly  upon  her  for  their  entertainment 
and  amusement.  Her  unselfishness  and  devoted  service 
to  all  with  whom  she  came  in  contact,  her  sympathy  for 
the  poor,  her  care  for  animals,  and  above  all  her  sunny, 
merry  spirit  have  left  an  indelible  impression  on  the 
hearts  of  the  family  into  which  she  married,  and  of 
which  she  was  a  much-loved  member. 

8.  Ida  Davis,  fifth  daughter  of  William  and  Mary 
Johnston  Davis,  was  born  September  24,  1852,  and  died 
March  22,  1853. 

9.  Hattie  E.  Davis,  sixth  daughter  of  the  same 
parents,  was  born  July  5,  1854,  and  died  May  8, 
1855. 

We  have  seen  what  a  forceful  family  was  reared  by 
Judge  Wm.  Davis.  When  a  man  of  his  physique,  energy, 
ability,  and  religious  principles  chose  for  his  wife  a  woman 
of  Mary  Johnston's  caliber,  he  proved  himself  a  good 
judge  indeed.  The  parents  of  such  a  family  must  have 
been  quite  ideal.  Mary  Johnston,  I  have  been  told,  was 
a  strong  character,  robust  in  health,  and  blessed  with  a 
vigorous  mentality,  even  beyond  the  age  of  fourscore 
years.     Added  to  this  she  had  a  strong  religious  faith. 


n.    JAMES  57 

which  sustained  and  guided  her  throughout  her  long  and 
useful  life. 

As  she  and  her  husband  were  one  in  purpose  and  in 
efiFort,  guided  by  the  same  fixed  principles  and  upheld  by 
the  same  unfaltering  trust  in  the  God  of  their  fathers, 
need  we  be  surprised  that  their  "children  rise  up  and  call 
them  blessed,"  and  that  the  world  has  been  made  a  better 
world  through  their  rearing  of  such  a  family? 

And  two  kindred  spirits  must  surely  have  met,  with 
joy  unutterable,  when  Mary  Means  and  Mary  Johnston 
recognized  each  other  in  their  Heavenly  Father's  house 
—  the  house  of  many  mansions ! 

2.  John  Cotton  Davis,  the  second  son  of  James  and 
Mary  Cotton  Davis,  was  born  March  30,  1814,  and  died 
May  9,  1880.  He  grew  up  on  the  ancestral  farm.  His 
parents  showed  the  same  good  sense  that  is  shown  by  the 
royal  family  in  Germany.  The  boys  all  learned  trades. 
John  C.  learned  the  trade  of  a  carpenter,  so  he  came  to 
own  a  farm  in  Vernon  township,  on  which  he  lived  and 
died.  On  July  4,  1844,  he  married  jNLuiy  An^  Ander- 
son, who  was  born  May  21, 1822.  ]Mr.  and  Mrs.  John  C. 
Da\'is  were  members  of  the  (then)  Second  Presbyterian 
Church  of  Meadville  and  were  buried  in  Greendale 
Cemetery.  They  had  two  children:  1.  E^evia,  2.  James 
Ellicott. 

1.  Emma  Davis  married  INIr.  John  Purvis.  At  her 
death  she  left  three  children:  Harry,  Frank,  and 
Florence.  I  have  not  been  able  to  reach  them.  Harry 
did  live  at  El  wood  City,  Pa.,  but  my  letter  addressed  to 
that  place  did  not  find  him  there.  I  learned  that  Florence 
married  !Mr.  Alonzo  WTiite. 

2.  James  Ellicott  Davis,  born  December  13,  1847, 
married  Melissa  Evelyn  Wilson,  who  was  bom  April  14, 
1853.  They  were  wedded  September  15,  1874.  They 
have  two  children,  Mary  and  Georgeanna. 


58  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

(a)  Mary  Davis,  born  October  3,  1875,  became  the 
wife  of  Harry  Lorandi  Leberman,  of  an  old  and  well 
known  Meadville  family,  on  September  14,  1897.  Mr. 
Leberman  was  born  March  19,  1873.  They  had  one  son 
—  Harold  Davis,  born  June  2,  1899.  He  is  a  bright  and 
promising  boy.  The  family  is  in  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church.  It  has  been  sadly  broken  and  bereaved,  since  I 
saw  them  in  1908,  by  the  death  of  Mr.  Leberman,  which 
occurred  December  26,  1908. 

(6)  George  ANNA  Davis,  born  June  2,  1877,  was  mar- 
ried, April  28,  1907,  to  Willard  Henry  Smith,  an  elec- 
trician of  Youngstown,  Ohio.  The  marriage  took  place  in 
the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  of  Meadville,  the  Rev. 
Raymond  Harold  Edwards,  rector,  being  the  officiating 
clergyman.  The  home  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Smith  is  in 
Youngstown,  where  they  are  members  of  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church. 

Mr.  Ellicott  Davis  is  In  the  service  of  the  Erie  Railway 
Company,  having  charge  of  their  store  in  Meadville,  of 
which  he  is  a  very  capable  and  faithful  manager.  He 
and  Mrs.  Davis  are  members  of  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church.  Their  home  is  on  Walnut  Street,  a  central  and 
pleasant  avenue,  on  which  a  number  of  the  Davis  families 
have  lived  for  many  years. 

3.  James  Stewart  Davis,  third  son  of  James  and 
Mary  C.  Davis,  was  born  February  23,  1816,  and  died 
June  26,  1898.  On  May  2,  1839,  he  married  Susan  Van 
HoRNE,  a  member  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
and  a  niece  of  the  well-known  pioneer  of  French  Valley, 
Cornelius  Van  Home.  She  died  in  1847,  leaving  one 
child,  James  Van  Horne  Davis,  who  was  born  January 
18,  1840.  He  is  living  on  the  farm  in  Union  township 
on  which  his  father  and  grandfather  lived  and  died. 
During  the  war  for  the  Union  Mr.  Davis  enlisted  and 
served   in   Company   F,    168th   Regiment   Pennsylvania 


n.   JAI^IES  59 

Volunteer  Infantry.  Mrs.  Davis  had  also  a  daughter, 
born  in  1844,  who  died  the  same  year. 

On  October  17,  1848,  Mr.  J.  Stewart  Davis  married  a 
second  wife,  Eliza,  fourth  daughter  of  Samuel,  youngest 
son  of  William  and  Mary  Means  Davis.  They  had  three 
children:  Henry,  born  January  13,  1850,  who  died  April 
15,  1853;  William,  born  August  11,  1855,  who  lived 
only  eleven  days,  and  Mary  Rosetta,  born  July  24,  1859. 
She  became  the  wife  of  Francis  Marion  Cutshall, 
January  1,  1885.  [See  further  concerning  Eliza  and  her 
daughter  Rosetta  under  Samuel  Davis.] 

Mr.  Davis  received  his  education  in  the  log  school- 
house  of  the  olden  time.  Born  and  brought  up  on  the 
farm  of  his  fathers,  he  naturally  chose  agriculture  as  his 
life's  work.  He  became  a  fine  specimen  of  the  typical 
American  —  an  intelligent  and  successful  farmer.  He 
was  a  good  citizen,  interested  in  public  affairs;  in  national 
politics,  a  Republican.  And,  what  was  more  important, 
and  what  made  him  a  public-spirited  citizen,  he  was  an 
active  Christian.  Being  a  member  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  for  more  than  fifty  years,  he  "served 
his  time"  as  class-leader,  Sunday-school  Superintendent, 
steward,  trustee,  etc.  The  practical  nature  of  his  religion 
is  shown  by  the  fact  that  he  shared  his  home  with  a 
number  of  relations,  who  had  no  families  of  their  own 
to  care  for  them  in  their  declining  years.  He  rounded  out 
a  beautiful  life  of  eighty-two  years  and  peacefully  passed 
on  to  the  Grand  Reunion  on  high.  His  wife  Eliza  had 
preceded  him. 

4.  Rachel  Davis,  the  fourth  child  and  only  daughter 
of  James  and  Mary  C.  Davis,  was  born  January  6,  1819, 
and  died  February  9,  1899,  having  passed  her  fourscore 
years.  She  grew  up  on  the  farm,  receiving  such  an  edu- 
cation as  the  schools  of  the  neighborhood  afforded.  On 
April  20,  1837,  she  was  married  to  James  Johnston.     The 


60  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

Johnston  farm  adjoined  that  of  the  Davises.  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Johnston  had  four  children:  Mary  C,  John  C, 
Nancy  A.,  and  Margaret  A. 

1.  Mary  C.  Johnston  was  born  December  15,  1839, 
and  died  June  14,  1864. 

2.  John  C.  Johnston  was  born  August  22,  1841,  and 
died  December  13,  1907.  He  married  Agnes  Hanna, 
September  20,  1868.  They  had  two  children  —  Margaret 
and  Gertrude. 

(a)  Margaret  Johnston  became  the  wife  of  Frederick 
Keith  Weller.  Their  only  child  has  died.  Mr.  Weller 
is  in  the  service  of  the  Erie  Railway  Company  and  their 
home  is  in  Meadville. 

(b)  Gertrude  Johnston  and  her  mother  occupy  the 
old  home,  in  Hayfield  township,  three  miles  north  of 
Meadville. 

3.  Nancy  Araminta  Johnston  was  born  February  6, 
1844,  and  died  April  7,  1861. 

4.  Margaret  Ann  Johnston  was  born  September  19, 
1847,  and  died  July  18,  1866. 

Mr.  James  Johnston  died  August  7,  1848.  Nearly 
thirty  years  after,  on  February  8,  1877,  Mrs.  Johnston 
became  the  wife  of  Mr.  Thomas  S.  Minnis,  of  Meadville, 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Reynolds  oflBciating  at  the  wedding. 
From  this  time  until  her  death,  Mrs.  Minnis's  home 
was  in  Meadville.  She  was  a  member  of  the  First 
Presbyterian  Church,  a  consistent  Christian,  a  fine-look- 
ing woman,  greatly  respected  in  the  community  and 
loved  by  all  who  knew  her. 

5.  Henry  Cotton  Davis,  the  fifth  child  and  fourth 
son  of  James  and  Mary  C.  Davis,  was  born  August  25, 
1822.  He  grew  up  on  the  farm,  receiving  a  common 
school  education,  and  when  twenty-one  he  went  to  Mead- 
ville to  learn  the  trade  of  shoemaking,  and  there  he 
spent  all  the  rest  of  his  long  life.     Until  about  fifteen  years 


I 


HENRY    C.    DAVIS 
{Brother  of  William,  Jr.) 


n.    JAMES  61 

before  his  decease,  he  was  engaged  in  the  shoe  trade, 
being  one  of  the  principal  merchants  of  the  city. 
He  was  a  member  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  from 
an  early  age.  He  was  a  good  musician.  He  taught  sing- 
ing-school in  the  good  old  way,  and  was  leader  of  the 
choir  in  his  church  for  a  quarter  of  a  century.  When  the 
present  building  of  the  First  Church  was  erected  he  aided 
the  work  by  giving  "Old  Folks'  Concerts"  in  Meadville 
and  other  towns.  They  were  very  popular  and  success- 
ful. Few  people  have  conducted  the  singing  at  as  many 
funerals  as  "Uncle  Henry."  He  was  ordained  an  elder 
of  the  First  Church  in  1887. 

On  October  21,  1852,  Mr.  Davis  married  Susan  Grier 
Wilson  (whose  mother  was  a  Grier).  Their  only  child 
lived  but  a  few  hours. 

Mrs.  Davis  was  an  excellent  woman,  who  for  more  than 
forty  years  added  to  the  comfort  and  welfare  of  her 
husband,  and,  as  a  consistent  Christian  and  member  of 
the  church,  did  what  she  could  to  make  the  world  better. 

In  the  closing  years  of  his  life  "Uncle  Henry"  (as  he 
was  affectionately  called  by  many  others,  as  well  as  by  his 
relatives)  was  rather  feeble,  but  retained  his  cheerful  and 
happy  spirit.  He  was  greatly  respected  and  loved  in  the 
community.  He  found  a  good  home  with  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Ellicott  Davis,  and  during  his  last  illness  had  every  care- 
ful attention  that  love  could  prompt,  and  on  October  18, 
1908,  the  good  and  much-loved  old  man  passed  peacefully 
away  to  join  the  many  loved  ones  gone  before. 

6.  Robert  Stockton  Davis,  the  sixth  child  and  fifth 
son  of  James  and  Mary  C.  Davis,  was  born  March  25, 
1824,  and  died  early  in  December,  1907.  Growing  up 
on  the  ancestral  farm,  he  received  a  common  school  edu- 
cation, and  spent  the  most  of  his  life  on  his  own  farm  in 
Vernon  township.  An  obituary  notice,  written  by  his 
pastor  and  published  in  the  Christian  Advocate,  will  give 


62  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

us  a  good  idea  of  what  kind  of  man  he  was.  "In  early 
life  he  gave  his  heart  to  God  and  was  ever  a  faithful 
worker  in  the  Lord's  vineyard.  In  September,  1849,  he 
married  Jane  Wingate,  who  died  in  1883.  The  follow- 
ing year  he  married  Mrs.  Elizabeth  M.  Cummings,  who 
preceded  him  to  the  heavenly  home  only  six  weeks.  The 
past  four  years  they  made  their  home  with  the  latter's 
daughter,  Mrs.  A.  W.  Phillips,  at  South  Sharon.  To 
this  home  "grandpa"  and  "grandma"  proved  a  great 
blessing,  and  though  they  have  passed  from  earth  their 
influence  will  long  be  felt  in  the  lives  of  those  with  whom 
they  were  associated.  ...  At  Vernon  Chapel,  where  he 
was  such  an  active  member  as  a  young  man,  and  in  the 
presence  of  his  old  friends,  his  pastor,  the  Rev.  Wm. 
Branfield,  preached  his  funeral  sermon.  He  was  laid  to 
rest  beside  his  wife  in  Watson  Run  Cemetery.  Another 
of  the  long-time  readers  of  the  Advocate  has  gone  to  rest. 
He  was  zealous,  faithful,  intelligent  and  self-sacrificing. 
His  testimony  and  prayers  had  the  ring  of  one  in  close 
touch  with  the  best  interests  of  his  church.  His  life  was 
love,  truth,  and  peace,  and  helpful  to  all.  -He  will  be 
remembered  as  one  of  the  best  of  men." 

While  an  earnest  Christian  and  church  worker,  being 
a  class-leader,  trustee,  etc.,  he  was  also  a  public-spirited 
citizen,  and  held  various  offices  of  trust  in  the  community 
in  which  he  lived.   In  national  politics  he  was  a  Republican. 

A  niece  of  Mr.  Davis,  in  writing  to  me,  said  of  Mrs. 
Davis,  "Aunt  Elizabeth  was  very  frail  for  years,  but  she 
was  a  dear,  good  woman." 

7.  Hugh  Cotton  Davis,  the  youngest  of  the  family 
of  James  and  Mary  C.  Davis,  lived  only  a  little  over  two 
years.  He  was  born  May  10,  1829,  and  died  August  12, 
1831. 

C.  Mary  Davis,  the  third  child  and  elder  daughter 
of  James  and  Rachel  Stewart  Davis,  was  born  December 


n.   JAMES  63 

3,  1788.  She  was  but  a  child  when  her  parents  moved 
from  Franklin  County  to  the  wilds  of  Allegheny  County, 
as  it  was  then,  and  pitched  their  tent  about  six  miles 
southwest  of  Meadville.  School  advantages  were  not 
yet  available,  but  Mary  had  intelligent  and  pious  parents 
and  she  no  doubt  received  a  good  home  education  and 
training.  She  was  wooed  and  won  by  John  H.  Work, 
of  Vernon  township,  and  they  were  married  December  15, 
1812.  He  was  a  tailor  by  trade.  He  purchased  and  lived 
on  a  farm  two  miles  west  of  Meadville.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Work  were  excellent  Christian  people,  and  raised  a  very 
fine  family,  prospering  in  the  world.  Mr.  Work  was 
treasurer  of  Crawford  County  for  a  term,  and  was  Asso- 
ciate Judge  of  the  Courts  of  the  County  from  1831  to 
1848,  respected  and  honored  by  all. 

Judge  and  Mrs.  Work  were  members  of  the  Associate, 
commonly  called  the  "Seceder"  Church,  and,  after  the 
union  of  1858,  of  the  United  Presbyterian  Church.  Their 
children  were  carefully  trained  in  church-going  habits, 
and  well  instructed  in  Christian  doctrine  and  duty,  so 
that  all  of  them  became  members  of  the  church  and 
respected  and  useful  people. 

Judge  Work  died  January  27,  1852,  in  his  seventy-fifth 
year.  Mrs.  Work,  being  a  Davis,  survived  her  husband 
thirty-four  years,  passing  away  August  7,  1886,  in  her 
ninety-sixth  year.  "Aunt  Polly  Work"  was  a  wise  and 
affectionate  mother,  a  firm  and  warm-hearted  friend, 
loved  and  respected,  through  her  long  life,  by  all  her 
kindred  and  acquaintances.  Her  funeral  was  very  largely 
attended,  the  services  being  conducted  by  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Donnan. 

The  children  of  Judge  and  Mrs.  Work  were  ten  in 
number:    1.    Rachel    S.,  2.    William,    3.    James    D., 

4.  Mary  P.,  5.  Margaret,  6.  Jane,  7.  John  H.,  8. 
Joseph,  9.  Jacob,  10.  Henry  S.  All  lived  to  maturity, 
except  one. 


64  THE   DAVIS    FAMILY 

1.  Rachel  Stewart  Work  was  born  June  7,  1815, 
and,  having  lived  a  quiet  but  useful  Christian  life  for 
nearly  eighty-two  years,  was  called  home  to  her  reward 
February  3,  1897. 

2.  William  Work  was  born  February  5,  1817.  He 
became  a  farmer  and  married  Mary  Johnston  April  29, 
1845.  He  did  not  enjoy  a  very  long  life,  but  passed 
away  February  18,  1855. 

3.  James  Davis  Work  was  born  November  21,  1818. 
On  March  27,  1845,  he  married  Ocilla  Cochran,  who  was 
a  daughter  of  John  Cochran,  one  of  the  pioneers  of  Craw- 
ford County,  who  once  resided  in  a  log  house  which 
stood  where  Cochranton's  Railroad  Station  now  stands. 
Mr.  Work  was  an  elder  in  the  Associate  Church  from  soon 
after  his  marriage.  After  the  Union  in  1858  he  was  an 
active  elder  in  the  United  Presbyterian  Church  until  his 
death.  As  a  public-spirited  citizen  he  held  several 
positions  of  honor.  He  was  commissioned  by  Governor 
Packer  as  captain  of  the  Cochranton  troop  of  the  uni- 
formed militia  in  1859.  In  1860  he  was  elected  Justice 
of  the  Peace  and  reelected  in  1865.  "Always  a  Christian, 
James  D.  Work  was  a  man  firm  of  character  and  of  sterling 
worth  as  a  citizen.  His  death  is  a  loss,  not  only  to  his 
family,  but  to  the  church  and  to  the  community.  His 
advice  and  counsel  were  sought  by  many,  and  the  record 
of  his  life  will  remain  as  a  good  example." 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Work  had  six  children:  1.  Nancy  J., 
2.  Mary  A.,  3.  John  H.,  4.  William,  5.  Ocilla,  6. 
Ellen  M. 

1.  Nancy  Jane  Work  was  born  August  14,  1850,  and 
was  married  to  Robert  Cooper  April  24,  1874.  They 
have  had  two  daughters,  Martha  J.  and  Maud. 

(a)  Martha  Jane  Cooper  was  born  February  21,  1875, 
and  was  married  to  Augustus  Stoyer  August  13,  1891. 


n.    JAMES  65 

Mr.  and  Airs.  Stover  are  members  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  of  Cochranton  and  have  three  children:  Freeda, 
born  October  "28,  1894;  Glendox,  born  September  8, 
190'2;  and  John,  born  November  '■21,  1904. 

(6)  AL\UD  Cooper  was  born  June  17,  1877,  and  was 
married  to  John  Anderson.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Anderson 
have  a  daughter  named  Flora  Jane,  born  August  7,  1897. 
Their  home  is  in  Dunkirk,  X.  Y.,  where  they  are  members 
of  the  Baptist  Church. 

2.  AL\RY  Ann  Work  was  born  July  2,  1852.  She  was 
married  to  Willoughby  C.  Pegan,  November  12,  1874. 
They  are  living  in  Cochranton,  where  Air.  Pegan  is 
interested  in  the  liverj'  business.  They  are  members  of 
the  United  Presbyterian  Church  and  are  highly  respected 
in  the  community.  They  have  had  three  children: 
Hugh  A.,  Wiluam  C,  and  Clare  C. 

(a)  Hugh  Andrew  Pegan  was  born  January  3,  1876. 
He  married  Gertrude  Bell,  of  Franklin,  Pa.,  January 
3,  1906.  Mr.  Pegan  is  a  blacksmith.  He  and  his  wife 
are  members  of  the  United  Presbyterian  Church  of 
Cochranton. 

(6)  William  Catherwood  Pegan  was  born  September 
29,  1877,  and  married  Elvada  Steen,  January  19,  1902. 
They  have  a  son  named  Harold  Gordon,  bom  October 
28,  1906.  Mr.  Pegan  is  a  farmer.  He  and  his  wife  are 
members  of  the  United  Presbyterian  Church  of  Coch- 
ranton. 

((?)  Cl-\re  Cochran  Pegan  was  born  April  27,  1883, 
and  died  September  23,  1884. 

3.  John  H.  Work  was  bom  January  17,  1855,  and 
married  AL\rgaret  McCance  December  17,  1881. 
They  have  four  children:  Ocilla.  Ella.  John  McCance, 
and  J.\ME5  Leslie.  Air.  and  Airs.  Work  are  members 
of  the  United  Presbyterian  Church.  Air.  Work  was 
elected  an  elder  in  the  church  shortly  after  the  death  of 
his  father,  whose  mantle  seems  to  have  fallen  on  him. 


66  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

He  is  the  teacher  of  a  large  Sabbath  School  class,  and  is 
a  liberal  supporter  of  the  church  and  of  the  work  of  the 
church  at  home  and  abroad.  The  older  daughters  are 
active  workers,  both  being  teachers  in  the  Sabbath 
School,  and  Ocilla  being  church  organist. 

4.  William  Work  was  born  April  25,  1857,  and 
married  Martha  A.  Ramsey  October  SO,  1884.  They 
are  members  of  the  United  Presbyterian  Church.  Mr. 
Work  has  been  trustee  and  treasurer,  and  is  a  Christian 
who  is  ready  to  serve  in  any  capacity  that  is  likely  to 
further  the  cause  of  his  Master.  Mr.  Wm.  Work  and 
his  brother  John  seem  to  be  pillars  of  the  church.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Work  have  a  son  named  Francis  Ramsey,  born 
September  24,  1887,  who,  on  October  14,  1908,  married 
Mary  Weeder.  They  are  both  members  of  the  United 
Presbyterian  Church. 

5.  Ocilla  Work  was  born  June  27,  1859,  and  was 
married  to  Almond  Cooper  of  Guy's  Mills,  Pa.,  in  Feb- 
ruary, 1886.  They  had  one  child  —  a  daughter  named 
Anna,  born  December  24,  1890.  Mr.  Cooper  died.  The 
daughter  Anna  was  married  to  Clifford  R.  Hunter, 
September  23,  1909.  They  are  members  of  the  Con- 
gregational Church  of  Guy's  Mills. 

6.  Ellen  M.  Work  was  born  May  31,  1861,  and  was 
married  to  James  C.  Bean,  February  22,  1888.  They 
have  had  five  children:  1.  Jennie,  born  January  21,  1889, 
2.  Frederick  James,  born  November  16,  1890,  3.  Mabel 
E.,  born  May  26,  1892,  4.  John  S.,  born  March  2,  1894, 
and  5.  An  infant  that  died  December  7,  1902.  All  of 
this  family  are  members  of  the  United  Presbyterian 
Church  of  Cochran  ton. 

4.  Mary  Patterson  Work,  fourth  child  and  second 
daughter  of  Judge  J.  H.  and  Mrs.  Mary  Davis  Work,  was 
born  May  10,  1820.  She  had  a  good  home  training  under 
her  excellent  parents,  and  on  October  20,  1842,  was  mar- 


II.    JAMES  67 

ried  to  Henry  Blair,  who  was  of  a  very  fine  family.  His 
parents  were  John  and  Mary  Blair  of  N.  Shenango  town- 
ship, Crawford  County.  They  belonged  to  the  Associate 
Church  of  S.  Shenango  township,  where  Henry  professed 
religion  and  united  with  the  church  in  his  youth.  He 
was  a  nephew  of  the  Rev.  David  Blair  of  Indiana,  Pa., 
and  a  cousin  of  the  Rev.  Hugh  H.  Blair  of  New  York. 
It  is  the  testimony  of  the  oldest  daughter  of  Henry  and 
Mary  Blair  that  they  not  only  professed  the  religion  of 
Christ,  but  that  they  manifested  its  spirit  and  power  in 
their  daily  lives.  Soon  after  their  marriage  they  moved 
to  the  farm  on  which  they  spent  their  lives.  It  was 
in  S.  Shenango  township  and  is  still  the  home  of  the 
family.  After  the  Union  of  1858,  the  Blairs  became 
members  of  the  United  Presbyterian  Church  of  James- 
town, Mercer  County,  and  that  was  their  church-home 
during  the  remainder  of  their  lives,  as  it  is  of  their 
children. 

Mr.  Henry  Blair  had  the  respect  and  confidence  of  the 
community,  and  was  called  to  fill  various  offices  of  trust, 
such  as  that  of  school  director,  supervisor  of  roads,  etc. 
The  same  may  be  said  of  his  sons. 

Mrs.  Mary  Work  Blair  died  December  7,  1878,  in  her 
fifty-ninth  year.  Mr.  Henry  Blair  died  March  9,  1894, 
in  his  seventy-fifth  year. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Blair  had  six  children,  as  follows:  1. 
Melvina,  2.  Mary  E.,  3.  John  H.,  4.  Andrew  J,, 
5.  William  W.,  6.  James  B. 

1.  Melvina  Blair  was  born  November  10,  1843,  and 
is  still  living  in  the  old  home,  and  is  a  faithful  member 
of  the  church  at  Jamestown. 

2.  Mary  Elizabeth  Blair  was  born  January  9,  1846, 
and  is  the  companion  of  her  sister  in  the  old  home  and 
church. 

3.  John  H.  Blair  was  born  October  27,  1847,  and 
died  March  14,  1853. 


68  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

4.  Andrew  J.  Blair  was  born  December  29,  1849. 
He  married  Margaret  McIlhany  of  Jamestown,  Mercer 
County,  April  29,  1886.  Soon  after  their  marriage  they 
settled  on  the  farm  in  S.  Shenango  township  on  which 
they  now  reside.  They,  with  their  children,  are  members 
of  the  United  Presbyterian  Church  of  Shenango.  Mr. 
Blair  has  for  some  years  been  a  ruling  elder  in  the 
church,  and  a  teacher  in  the  Sabbath  School.  They 
have  four  children:  Maud  E.,  Anna  M.,  Frank  C, 
and  Helen  E. 

(a)  Maud  Elma  Blair  was  born  March  4,  1887,  was 
graduated  from  the  Jamestown  High  School  in  1905,  then 
taught  school  for  four  years,  and  has  since  been  graduated 
from  the  State  Normal  School  at  Slippery  Rock,  Butler 
County,  Pa. 

(6)  Anna  Mary  Blair  was  born  August  13,  1889. 
She  also  was  graduated  from  the  Jamestown  High  School 
in  1905,  taking  the  honors  of  the  class.  That  fall  she 
entered  the  State  Normal  School  at  Slippery  Rock,  and 
was  graduated  in  1907.  She  is  now  in  her  fourth  year  as 
a  teacher. 

(c)  Frank  Clement  Blair  was  born  May  27,  1893, 
and  is  attending  the  High  School  of  Jamestown. 

(d)  Helen  Elizabeth  Blair,  born  December  22,  1895, 
is  attending  the  District  School  near  her  home. 

5.  William  Work  Blair  bom  December  10,  1851, 
married  Martha  C.  Smith  of  Cochran  ton,  March  11, 
1886.  They  then  moved  to  the  farm  in  Sudsbury  town- 
ship, on  which  they  resided  until  Mr.  Blair's  death, 
August  11,  1891.  They  were  members  of  the  United 
Presbyterian  Church  of  Hartstown. 

6.  James  B.  Blair,  born  June  5,  1856,  married 
Florence  A.  Ellis  of  Hartstown,  May  23,  1905.  They 
live  in  the  old  home.  They  have  two  daughters,  Mary 
Margaret,  born  October  25,  1906,  and  a  daughter  born 
September  12,  1909. 


n.    JAMES  69 

5.  ^L\RGARET  Work  was  born  October  24,  1822,  and 
died  March  24,  1906,  in  her  eighty-fourth  year.  She  was 
a  faithful  member  of  the  United  Presbyterian  Church. 

6.  Jane  Work  was  born  October  18,  1824,  lived  a 
consistent  and  useful  Christian  life,  and  on  May  17,  1894, 
was  called  up  to  her  reward. 

7.  John  Henry  Work  was  born  September  30,  1826. 
His  career  was  a  short  one.  On  July  27,  1840,  when 
he  was  not  yet  fourteen,  scarlet  fever  claimed  him  as 
one  of  its  victims. 

8.  Joseph  Work  was  born  July  27,  1828.  WTiile  all 
his  brothers  became  farmers,  Joseph  learned  the  trade 
of  a  carpenter.  On  December  20,  1859,  he  married  Eliza 
H.  WiLLi-\MS.  He  died  October  28,  1899,  in  his  seventy- 
second  year. 

9.  Jacob  Work  was  born  x\ugust  27,  1830.  He  spent 
his  life  as  a  farmer,  never  married,  was  a  good  member 
of  the  United  Presbyterian  Church,  and  died  August  18, 
1903,  when  nearly  seventy-three  years  of  age. 

10.  Henry  Stew^\rt  Work  was  born  November  19, 
1834.  He  was  a  life-long  invalid,  passing  away  Febru- 
ary 19,  1863,  when  twenty-eight  years  of  age. 

D.  Rachel  Davis,  fourth  child  and  second  daughter 
of  James  and  Rachel  Stewart  Davis,  was  born  April  15, 
1791.  She  was  married  to  Frederick  Haymaker,  Esq., 
April  22,  1808.  Mr.  Haymaker  was  one  of  the  pioneers, 
having  come  to  the  village  of  Meadville  in  1793.  He 
was  the  first  postmaster  of  the  town,  and  a  justice  of  the 
peace.  He  belonged  to  a  family  prominent  in  the  early 
history  of  the  West,  and  was  a  man  of  education  and 
intelligence.  He  was  the  private  secretary  of  Aaron 
Burr  at  the  time  of  the  alleged  conspiracy  troubles. 
However  it  may  have  been  with  the  ambitious  Burr, 


70  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

Frederick,  it  is  well  known,  was  at  all  times  loyal  to  his 
country.  He  was  the  son  of  Jacob  Haymaker.  Jacob 
was  the  son  of  Stophel,  or  Christopher  Haymaker,  a 
native  of  Germany,  who  came  to  this  country  and  settled 
in  Allegheny  County,  Pa.,  in  colonial  times.  He  died  in 
1788.  Jacob  Haymaker  became  a  very  wealthy  man  for 
those  times.  The  family  tradition  is,  that  he  loaned  the 
State  of  Virginia  eighty  thousand  pounds,  and  that  he 
helped  the  government  in  equipping  vessels,  fitting  out 
a  regiment  of  soldiers,  in  building  forts  and  block-houses, 
to  such  an  extent  that  he  used  up  all  his  fortune  in  aiding 
to  carry  on  the  Revolutionary  War.  The  government 
could  not  repay  him.  He  was  informed  that  he  would 
have  to  wait  till  a  gold  mine  was  discovered.  The  debt 
has  never  been  paid.  "Jacob  was  a  good  mechanic," 
says  George  S.  Davis,  one  of  his  descendants,  "and  we 
have  in  the  family  a  coffee-mill  that  he  made,  which 
ground  the  first  coffee  that  ever  was  ground  in  Pittsburg. 
It  was  the  only  coffee-mill  in  the  town,  and  people  would 
bring  their  coffee  to  be  ground,  and  leave  the  hopper 
full  as  toll."  Jacob  Haymaker  had  four  sons  —  John, 
George,  Frederick,  and  Jacob,  and  four  daughters  — 
Margaret,  Catherine,  Sarah,  and  Eve.  John  was  the 
friend  and  companion  of  Brady,  the  famous  Indian 
scout,  and  was  the  first  to  measure  the  distance 
Brady  had  leaped  across  the  Cuyahoga,  when  he 
escaped  the  pursuing  Indians.^  John,  George,  and  Fred- 
erick all  died  near  Newton's  Falls,  O.  Their  brother 
Jacob  died  in  Allegheny  County,  Pa.,  and  is  buried  in 
Plum  Creek  Cemetery.  Catherine  Haymaker  became  the 
wife  of  Samuel  Davis,  an  uncle  of  Rachel,  and  was  the 
ancestress  of  many  who  will  be  named  under  Samuel. 

Rachel  Davis  must  have  been  a  very  bright  and  attrac- 
tive girl  of  seventeen  to  win  the  heart  and  hand  of 
Frederick  Haymaker.   Soon  after  their  marriage  they  went 

^  Twenty-two  feet. 


JAMES    DAVIS    HAY  M  A  K  E  R 


n.    JAMES  71 

to  Franklin  INIills,  now  Kent,  O.,  in  Franklin  Township, 
comprising  sixteen  thousand  acres,  which  was  bought  for 
twelve  and  a  half  cents  an  acre  by  Aaron  Olmstead,  of 
Hartford,  Conn.  As  early  as  1803,  Benjamin  Tappan  and 
others  built  a  bridge  over  the  river  a  few  yards  from  the 
spot  where  Brady  had  made  his  great  leap.  The  first  set- 
tlers were  Jacob  Haymaker  and  his  family.  They  bought 
six  hundred  acres  of  land,  built  a  mill,  and  lived  for  a  time 
in  a  small  building  which  had  been  erected  by  Olmstead's 
surveyors.  In  this  cabin  (it  was  nothing  more)  on  the 
banks  of  the  Cuyahoga,  Jajmes  Davis  Hayimaker  was 
born  September  2,  1809.  And,  sad  to  relate,  about  ten 
days  after  the  birth  of  this  child,  the  young  and  lovely 
mother  passed  away  from  earth.  Mr.  Haymaker's  sister, 
Catherine,  carried  the  babe  on  horseback  from  Franklin 
Mills,  O.,  to  James  Davis's  in  Crawford  County,  Pa.^ 
In  the  home  of  his  grandparents  the  first  ten  years  of  his 
life  were  spent.  Among  his  playmates  was  his  cousin, 
young  William  Davis,  whose  father  lived  on  a  neighboring 
farm.  William  afterward  became  Judge  Davis,  one  of 
Meadville's  best  and  most  useful  citizens.  The  friend- 
ship formed  in  early  boyhood  was  strong  and  lasting  on 
both  sides.  It  was  while  visiting  his  old  friend,  Davis 
Haymaker,  that  Judge  Davis  was  exposed  to  a  rain- 
storm and  contracted  a  cold  which  brought  on  the  illness 
that  resulted  in  his  death. 

At  ten  years  of  age  the  lad  returned  to  live  with  his 
father,  who  had  married  again,  and  was  living  at  Brady's 
Run,  Beaver  County,  Pa.  Four  years  later  his  father 
moved  back  to  Franklin  Mills,  O.,  and  the  boy  was  on  his 
"native  heath."  Here  he  received  all  the  schooling  he 
ever  had.  Home  employment  hindered  his  obtaining 
much  school  education.  But  he  had  a  good  mind,  and 
a   strong   character,  and   he   grew  up  securing    a    good 

*  Frederick  Haymaker,  the  husband  of  Rachel  Davis,  and  father  of  James 
Davis  Haymaker,  was  married  three  times,  and  had  twenty-one  children. 


72  THE   DAVIS    FAMILY 

self -education.  After  two  years  he  went  into  the 
woolen  factory,  and  there  he  worked  for  four  years. 
He  then  engaged  in  the  business  of  making  wooden 
pails,  tubs,  and  wooden  ware.  At  this  he  continued 
for  two  years.  Next  an  aunt  of  his  at  Fairport,  O., 
sent  for  him  to  come  and  assist  her  in  "keeping  tavern," 
as  it  was  called  in  those  days.  So  he  spent  two  years  in 
that  business.  Being  now  about  twenty-five  years  of  age 
he  settled  down  in  1834  upon  the  place  which  he  owned 
as  long  as  he  lived.  He  first  bought  eighty-six  acres  of 
land  covered  with  timber,  and  went  to  work  clearing  it, 
while  living  in  a  log  cabin,  his  sister  Rachel  keeping  house 
for  him.  He  had  a  period  of  hard  work  and  great  expos- 
ure while  clearing  this  land,  and  preparing  the  materials 
for  a  house  and  barn.  In  June,  1835,  he  was  ready  for  the 
"raising,"  and  it  was  the  first  "cold-water  raising,"  that 
is,  the  first  in  all  that  region,  at  which  no  intoxicating 
liquor  was  furnished  to  the  men  who  assisted.  The  very 
next  day  he  proceeded  to  carry  out  a  plan  he  had  thought 
out  while  hard  at  work.  He  invited  Mary  Rosetta  Olin, 
the  daughter  of  a  neighbor,  to  take  a  pleasure  ride  with 
him.  This  ride  proved  to  be  the  beginning  of  a  courtship 
which  resulted  in  a  wedding,  and  a  life-long  and  blessed 
attachment.  In  1851  he  "bought  out"  his  neighbor, 
David  Longcoy,  and  left  the  house  he  had  built  in  1835, 
and  moved  into  a  larger  and  better  one,  which  he  occupied 
as  long  as  he  lived. 

It  was  on  November  29,  1835,  that  J.  D.  Haymaker 
and  Mary  Rosetta  Olin  were  married.  The  bride  was 
born  in  Perry,  Wyoming  County,  N.  Y.,  February  22, 
1820,  the  daughter  of  Arvin  Olin  and  Betsy  Bennett,  his 
wife.  The  Olin  family  is  one  widely  known,  with  exten- 
sive connections,  having  branches  in  Vermont,  New  York, 
Ohio,  and  Michigan.  An  interesting  history  of  the  Ezra 
Olin  family  has  been  published,  prepared  by  George  S. 
Nye,  one  of  the  descendants.     To  it  I  am  indebted  for 


MRS.   JAMES    DAVIS    HAYMAKER 


n.   JAMES  73 

nearly  all  that  I  am  able  to  give  concerning  Rachel  Davis 
and  her  descendants. 

A  notable  event  in  the  history  of  James  Davis  Hay- 
maker and  his  wife  was  the  celebration  of  their  golden 
wedding  in  1885,  when  over  two  hundred  friends  re- 
sponded to  invitations,  and  nine  of  their  ten  surviving 
children  were  present.  The  congratulations  of  their 
friends,  the  reception  of  beautiful  gifts,  sweet  music, 
poetry, and  song,  with  the  beauty  and  fragrance  of  flowers, 
all  united  in  making  the  occasion  a  most  happy  one,  and 
one  long  to  be  remembered. 

With  long-continued  failing  health,  Mr.  Haymaker 
was  brought  down  gradually  to  the  closing  scene  of  life, 
which  ended  gently  and  peacefully,  January  31,  1889,  in 
his  eightieth  year. 

Mrs.  Haymaker  died  in  Ravenna,  January  27,  1907, 
in  her  eighty-seventh  year. 

They  were  active  and  liberal  members  of  the  Univer- 
salist  Church. 

Their  children  were  fourteen  in  number:  1.  Franklin, 
2.  Oscar  F.,  3.  Rachel  Davis,  4.  Ann  M.,  5.Arvin  O., 
6.  JVIary  R.,  7.  James  A.,  8.  Clara  L.,  9.  An  unnamed 
infant,  10.  Almira  E.,  11.  Martha  A.,  12.  Cora  E.,  13. 
William  J.,  14.  Abbie  M. 

1.  Franklin  Haymaker  was  born  December  16,  1836, 
In  his  fifteenth  year  he  accidentally  fell  in  front  of  a 
moving  hand-car  on  the  railroad  which  was  being  con- 
structed near  his  home,  and  was  injured,  so  that  death 
resulted  in  a  few  days,  on  April  30,  1851.  He  was  buried 
in  Standing  Rock  Cemetery.  ■ 

2.  Oscar  F.  Haymaker  was  born  May  21,  1838.  He 
received  his  education  in  the  public  schools.  For  nearly 
thirty  years  he  was  a  very  successful  teacher,  known  in 
educational  circles  as  "Old  Reliable."  On  May  21, 1862, 
he  married  Mary  S.  Burlingame  in  Philadelphia.  She 
was  born  June  26,  1842,  in  Newberry,  Geauga  County,  O. 


74  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

Her  father,  a  practising  physican,  moved  to  Streetsboro 
Center,  Portage  County,  when  she  was  nine  years  of  age. 

Mr.  Haymaker  was  a  very  capable  man,  and  was  called 
to  fill  many  important  offices,  having  the  respect  and 
confidence  of  the  people  to  an  unusual  degree.  He 
prospered  in  his  affairs,  securing  a  large  farm  with  a  fine 
homestead.  He  attributed  his  success  in  life  to  his 
always  having  simply  "aimed  to  be  trustworthy."  But 
may  it  not  have  been  partly  owing,  as  it  generally  is  in 
the  case  of  happy  and  successful  men,  to  the  possession 
of  a  sensible  and  capable  wife.'^ 

Mr.  Haymaker  died  May  4,  1907.  Mrs.  Haymaker  is 
living  in  Kent,  loved  and  honored  by  all.  She  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Universalist  Church. 

Their  family  consisted  of  three  daughters  and  an 
adopted  son:  1.  Ida  A.,  2.  Coea  M.,  3.  Lillie  E.,  and 
4.  Edward  C. 

(a)  Ida  A.  Haymaker  was  born  February  27,  1863. 
She  received  her  education  in  the  district  school  and  at 
Buchtel  College.  She  was  married  to  Frank  A.  Merrill, 
December  21,  1882.  Mr.  Merrill  was  born  in  Franklin, 
November  25,  1859.  He  received  a  good  common  school 
education,  and  studied  at  Western  Reserve  College  until 
impaired  eye-sight  compelled  him  to  abandon  study  for 
a  time.  He  became  a  very  successful  teacher  in  Ravenna, 
being  principal  for  one  year,  and  Superintendent  for 
eighteen,  retiring  finally  on  account  of  his  health  to  his 
farm  near  Kent.  They  have  four  children:  1.  Grace  E., 
2.  Gladys  M.,  3.  Mary  B.,  4.  Margaret  F. 

(a)  Grace  Estelle  Merrill  was  born  September  13, 
1883.  She  was  graduated  from  the  Ravenna  High  School, 
was  a  student  in  the  Woman's  College  of  Western  Reserve, 
Cleveland,  for  two  years,  and  taught  school  for  two 
years  in  Ravenna.  She  has  the  gifts  and  taste  of  an 
artist.  On  October  10,  1908,  she  was  married  to  Carl 
Freeman  Foote,  of  Kent,  who  was  born  December  16, 


II.    JAMES  75 

1881.  He  is  bookkeeper  and  salesman  in  the  Goodman 
Piano  Store  in  Cleveland.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Foote  have  their 
home  in  Ravenna.  They  have  one  child,  Caroline 
Martha,  born  August  26,  1909.  Mr.  Foote  is  a  member 
of  the  Universalist  Church. 

(/3)  Gladys  IVIartha  Merrill  was  born  February  24, 
1887.  She  was  graduated  from  the  Ravenna  High 
School,  and  has  for  several  years  been  stenographer  for 
Mr.  W.  J.  Beckley,  an  attorney  of  Ravenna.  On  June  14, 
1911,  she  was  married  to  Edgar  Greene,  a  worthy  young 
man,  having  a  shoe-store  in  Ravenna. 

(y)  Mary  Burlingame  Merrill  was  born  October  31, 
1889.  She  was  graduated  from  the  Ravenna  High  School, 
and  studied  for  two  years  at  the  Woman's  College  in 
Cleveland. 

(5)  Margaret  Frances  Merrill  was  born  April  24, 
1891,  and  has  been  graduated  from  the  Ravenna  High 
School. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Merrill  and  their  daughters  are  members 
of  the  Congregational  Church  in  Ravenna.  Mrs.  Merrill 
and  all  her  daughters  have  a  taste  and  talent  for  music. 
Mrs.  Merrill  is  a  member  of  the  choir  in  their  church. 

(6)  Cora  M.  Haym.\e:er  was  born  October  16,  1864. 
She  attended  the  public  schools  at  Earlville  and  Kent, 
and  was  a  student  at  Buchtel  College  for  three  years. 
On  August  4,  1886,  she  was  married  to  Elmer  E.  France, 
who  was  born  in  Franklin  Township  April  22,  1863.  He 
is  in  the  mercantile  business  in  Kent,  in  company  with 
his  brother-in-law,  Mr.  Swan.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  France 
have  two  children:  1.  Carl  H,  born  in  Kent,  June  8,  1887. 
He  is  the  head  of  a  dyeing  establishment  in  Norwalk, 
Conn.  2.  IVIarjory  B.,  born  in  Kent,  January  12,  1891. 
She  is  a  student  at  Buchtel  College. 

(c)  LiLLiE  E.  Haymaker  was  born  September  25, 1866. 
She  attended  the  district  school  at  Earlville,  then  the 
High  School  in  Akron,  and  studied  three  years  at  Buchtel 


76  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

College.  On  March  11,  1891,  she  was  married  to  Her- 
bert A.  Swan,  who  was  born  at  Everett,  Summit 
County,  O.,  January  20,  1866.  His  father  was  a  farmer, 
and  the  son  followed  the  same  occupation  for  some  years. 
But  he  is  now  in  the  mercantile  business  in  Kent,  with 
his  brother-in-law,  Mr.  France. 

(d)  Edward  C.  Haymaker  was  secured  from  the 
Cleveland  Orphan  Asylum,  and  was  adopted  by  O,  F. 
and  Mary  S.  Haymaker,  December  31,  1882,  he  being 
at  that  time  seven  years  old. 

On  May  25,  1898,  he  married  Miss  Netta  Bortz,  of 
Kent.  They  have  three  children:  1.  Carlton  Bortz 
Haymaker,  born  February  16,  1899,  2.  Gladys  Lucile 
Haymaker,  born  July  10,  1901,  3.  Stanley  Oscar  Hay- 
maker, born  August  16,  1909. 

Mr.  Haymaker  is  an  engineer  in  the  employ  of  the 
Bessemer  Steel  Company,  Youngstown,  O.,  where  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Haymaker  own  their  home,  and  are  members 
of  the  Lutheran  Church. 

3.  Rachel  Davis  Haymaker,  third  child  and  oldest 
daughter  of  J.  D.  and  M.  R.  Haymaker,  was  born  May  17, 
1840.  Her  education  was  received  in  the  district  school 
and  in  a  select  school  in  Kent.  On  August  20,  1868,  she 
was  married  to  McKendree  D.  Norton,  who  was  born 
in  Wadsworth,  Medina  County,  O.,  March  6,  1836. 
When  he  was  thirteen  years  old  his  father  moved  to 
Franklin  Township,  Portage  County.  McKendree  worked 
on  the  farm  until  the  war  broke  out,  in  1861,  when  he 
volunteered,  and  was  mustered  into  service  at  Columbus 
as  a  member  of  the  9th  Ohio  Volunteer  Artillery.  He 
was  in  very  active  service  during  the  entire  period  of  the 
war,  being  mustered  out  of  service  at  Chattanooga,  June 
16,  1865.  During  the  greater  part  of  the  time  he  served 
as  a  non-commissioned  officer.  The  only  child  of  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Norton,  Mary  Jennett  Norton,  was  born 
January  28,  1874,  and  died  August  20,  1876.     She  was 


n.   JAMES  77 

buried  in  Standing  Rock  Cemetery.  Mr.  Norton  has 
passed  away  from  earth;  and  Mrs.  Norton  is  living  in 
her  pleasant  home  in  Kent,  a  Christian  lady,  respected 
and  loved  by  all  who  know  her. 

4.  Ann  M.  Haymaker,  fourth  child  and  second 
daughter  of  J.  D.  and  M.  R.  Haymaker,  was  born  May  15, 
1842.  After  the  usual  education  in  the  district  school 
and  select  school  in  Kent,  she  was  married,  November  28, 
1861,  to  Stephen  H.  Green,  who  was  born  October  28, 
1838,  in  Franklin  township.  He  possessed  a  fine  farm 
in  the  southern  part  of  Streetsboro  township,  and  was 
described  to  me  as  a  very  cheerful,  jovial  man,  and  a 
successful  farmer. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Green  have  both  passed  away,  Mrs. 
Green  on  May  12,  1893,  at  the  age  of  fifty-one,  Mr. 
Green  on  October  10,  1901,  in  his  sixty-third  year. 

They  had  five  children:  1.  Carrie  R.,  2.  Luella  E., 
3.  Otis  H.,  4.  Mary  A.,  and  5.  Wilbur  S. 

(a)  Carrie  R.  Green  was  born  October  17, 1863.  She 
attended  first  the  district  school  at  home,  and  afterward 
the  Union  School  in  Kent.  On  May  2,  1883,  she  was 
married  to  Elwood  H.  Bosworth,  who  was  born  in 
Newberry,  Geauga  County,  O.,  March  26,  1861.  In 
1866  his  father  moved  to  Streetsboro  township,  Port- 
age County,  to  a  farm  which  he  had  purchased.  After 
Elwood's  marriage  he  took  charge  of  this  farm,  his 
father  having  died. 

Mr.  and  Mrs,  Bosworth  have  four  children:  1.  Lorena, 
2.  Anna  G.,  3.  Bernice  R.,  and  4.  Lyiman  G. 

(a)  Lorena  Bosworth  was  born  August  1,  1886, 
attended  the  district  school,  was  graduated  from  Ravenna 
High  School  in  1904,  taught  school  successfully  for  three 
years,  and  then  entered  Hiram  College,  which  she  was 
obliged  to  leave  before  graduation,  on  account  of  the  ill- 
ness of  her  mother.  She  is  now  (1910)  at  Hiram  College 
again. 


78  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

(/8)  Anna  Grace  Bosworth  was  born  April  2,  1889, 
attended  the  public  school,  was  graduated  from  Ravenna 
High  School  in  1907,  taught  school  successfully  for  two 
years,  and  then  entered  Hiram  College.  She  was 
married,  August  10,  1911,  to  Mr.  Vaughn  Webb,  a 
graduate  of  Hiram,  and  a  teacher. 

(y)  Bernice  Rosetta  Bosworth  was  born  November 
16,  1895,  and  is  now  in  the  high  school  at  Streetsboro 
Center. 

(8)  Lyman  Green  Bosworth  was  born  October  13, 
1897,  and  is  attending  school  at  Streetsboro  Center. 

One  of  the  young  people  in  this  family  circle  writes: 
"We  still  live  on  the  Lyman  Bosworth  homestead.  All 
intend  and  will  try  to  live  straight-forward  Christian 
lives;  and,  if  the  children  only  follow  in  the  footsteps 
of  their  parents,  they  will  be  citizens  of  whom  all  may 
well  be  proud." 

(6)  Luella  E.  Green  was  born  March  27,  1866.  The 
formal  part  of  her  education  was  received  in  the  district 
school;  the  real  part  of  it  at  home.  She  was  married, 
September  17,  1884,  to  Oscar  G.  Selden,  who  was  born 
June  30,  1863,  at  Hudson,  O.  He  was  reared  on  a 
farm,  and  when  seventeen  years  of  age  went  to  Streets- 
boro Center  to  learn  blacksmithing.  Here  he  carried  on 
this  business  for  some  years.  He  then  removed  to 
Akron,  O.  By  industry  and  integrity  Mr.  Selden  has 
prospered.  He  is  now  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of 
wagons  and  automobile  tops,  having  a  number  of  men  in 
his  employ.  He  and  Mrs.  Selden  are  members  of  the 
First  Baptist  Church,  and  are  actively  engaged  in 
Christian  work.  Mr.  Selden  is  a  deacon,  and  one  of 
the  official  board  of  the  church.  Mrs.  Selden^is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Y.  W.  C.  A.  and  of  the  W.  C.  T.  U.,  as  well  as 
of  one  or  two  literary  clubs.  They  have  two  children: 
Howard  G.  and  Anna  M. 

(a)  Howard  Green  Selden  was  born  in  Streetsboro, 


n.   JAMES  79 

February  24,  1886.  He  attended  the  public  schools  in 
Streetsboro,  and  the  high  school  in  Akron.  He  then 
studied  in  Buchtel  Academy,  and  in  Buchtel  College. 
He  has  devoted  much  time  to  the  study  of  art,  both  in 
college  and  under  private  instructors. 

(^)  Anna  Marie  Selden  was  born  in  Streetsboro 
March  14,  1889.  She  attended  the  public  schools  of 
Akron,  and  was  graduated  from  Buchtel  Academy  in 
1909.  She  has  had  some  of  the  best  music  teachers  in 
Akron  and  Cleveland,  and  has  become  so  proficient  that 
she  is  now  giving  part  of  her  time  to  instruction  on 
the  piano. 

(c)  Otis  H.  Green  was  born  August  10,  1870,  and  took 
a  full  course  in  the  public  schools  of  Streetsboro,  graduat- 
ing from  the  high  school.  He  then  farmed  with  his 
father  for  two  years.  Then  he  and  his  brother-in-law, 
Mr.  Bradley,  cultivated  the  farm  for  three  years.  On 
October  4,  1893,  he  married  Rella  Burroughs,  who  was 
born  April  30,  1872.  In  the  spring  of  1896  he  took  pos- 
session of  the  farm  of  one  hundred  and  thirty-three  acres 
which  he  now  owns  and  cultivates.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Green  have  three  sons:  Leonard  Stephen,  born  June  11, 
1896;  Harry  Bernard,  born  February  20,  1898;  and 
Kenneth  Burroughs,  born  January  22,  1900.  They 
are  fine,  healthy,  stirring  boys.  They  attend  the  Streets- 
boro Centralized  School,  and  are  carried  to  and  fro,  each 
school-day,  by  one  of  the  township  vans. 

(d)  Mary  A.  Green  was  born  in  Streetsboro  February 
5,  1874.  She  attended  the  district  school  and  the  high 
school  in  Kent.  She  then  made  her  home  with  her  sister, 
Mrs.  Bosworth,  until  her  marriage,  October  5,  1893,  to 
Ora  Dennis  Bradley,  who  was  born  in  Stow,  Summit 
County,  O.,  November  3,  1876.  He  is  a  farmer,  and 
resides  in  Hudson  township.  He  attended  the  public 
schools,  worked  on  his  father's  farm  for  a  time,  and  then 
attended  and  was  graduated  from  Clark's  Business  Col- 


80  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

lege,  Erie,  Pa.  After  their  marriage  he  and  Mrs.  Bradley 
lived  on  her  father's  farm  for  two  years.  They  then 
bought  a  farm  in  Hudson  township,  on  which  they  lived 
until  about  1908,  when  they  purchased  an  adjoining  farm 
on  which  they  now  live.  For  ten  years  past  Mr.  Bradley 
has  been  a  member  of  the  Hudson  School  Board,  acting 
as  president  and  clerk. 

He  attributes  his  success  as  a  farmer  to  his  early  asso- 
ciation with  the  farmers'  organization  —  the  Grange. 
Since  nine  years  of  age  he  has  attended  Grange  meetings, 
and  so  he  has  a  multitude  of  friends  among  the  farmers  of 
northern  Ohio.  He  was  instrumental  in  establishing 
the  N.  Ohio  Milk  Producers'  Association,  and  he  is  one 
of  the  directors  of  the  Summit  County  Farmers'  Institute. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bradley  have  four  children:  1.  Paul 
Green,  born  October  16,  1894,  2.  Norma  Annetta,  born 
September  19,  1897,  3.  Lemoine  Dwight,  born  May  8, 
1901,  and  4.  Leatha  Elizabeth,  born  November  7,  1906. 

Paul  is  in  the  Hudson  High  School,  Norma  and  Lemoine 
are  in  the  rural  school.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bradley  and  Paul 
are  members  of  the  Congregational  Church.  They  have 
a  pleasant,  happy  home.  The  children  are  bright  and 
full  of  promise.  As  a  friend  says  of  them,  "They  are 
splendid  specimens  of  American  youth." 

(e)  Wilbur  S.  Green  was  born  July  28,  1876.  While 
attending  Western  Reserve  College  at  Hudson,  he  was 
stricken  with  brain-fever.  Death  ended  his  terrible 
sufferings  February  18,    1893,   in   his  seventeenth  year. 

5.  Arvin  Olin  Haymaker,  fifth  child  and  third  son 
of  J.  D.  and  M.  R.  Haymaker,  was  born  April  5,  1844. 
He  grew  up  on  his  father's  farm.  His  education  was  re- 
ceived in  the  district  school  and  at  Mount  Union  College. 
On  April  5,  1866,  he  married  Hattie  E.  Norton,  in 
Bromfield,  O.  She  was  born  in  Edinburg,  Portage 
County,  September  3,  1846.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Haymaker 
then  went  to  housekeeping  on  their  fine  farm,  in  the 


n.    JAMES  81 

northern  part  of  Franklin  Township,  where  Mr.  Hay- 
maker still  lives. 

Mrs,  Haymaker  died  April  7,  1869,  leaving  two  chil- 
dren: 1.  Charles  A.,  born  October  26,  1867,  2.  Hattie 
E.,  born  March  29,  1869,  only  nine  days  old  when  her 
mother  passed  away. 

(a)  Charles  Anson  Haymaker  attended  the  district 
school,  passed  two  years  in  Kent  Union  School,  and  spent 
several  terms  at  Ohio  Wesleyan  University,  at  Delaware. 

(6)  Hattie  Eliza  Haymaker  received  her  education 
in  the  district  school,  at  Kent  Union  School,  and  at  the 
Ohio  Wesleyan  University  at  Delaware. 

Mr.  Haymaker  married  again  on  May  26,  1870.  The 
bride  was  Harriet  Powell,  who  was  born  March  14, 
1843.  They  were  married  at  her  father's  home  in  Colum- 
biana County,  near  Alliance,  O.  Mr.  Powell  was  one 
of  the  first  settlers  in  that  part  of  the  state.  He  and  Mrs. 
Powell  lived  together  fifty-eight  years,  and  both  passed 
their  fourscore  years.  Harriet  attended  the  common 
school  and  spent  several  terms  at  Mt.  Union  College. 
She  became  the  mother  of  four  children:  1.  Homer  A., 
2.  Deborah  J.,  3.  Franklin  P.,  and  4.  Abbie  R. 

(c)  Homer  Anthony  Haymaker  was  born  August  31, 
1871.  He  was  graduated  from  the  Kent  High  School 
and  from  the  Ohio  Wesleyan  University  at  Delaware  in 
1897.  He  taught  for  several  years,  and  then  established 
an  office  in  Pittsburg,  where  he  is  representing  the  Mer- 
riam  Publishing  House,  of  Springfield,  Mass.  On  August 
10, 1907,  he  married  Lotta  Carter,  of  Bellaire,  a  graduate 
of  Ohio  Wesleyan  University. 

(d)  Deborah  J.  Haymaker  had  the  same  educational 
advantages  as  her  brother  Homer,  graduating  from 
Ohio  Wesleyan  University  in  1898.  She  has  been  a  very 
capable  and  successful  teacher  —  for  some  years  past 
teacher  of  English  and  Latin  in  the  Central  High  School 
of  Pittsburg. 


82  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

(e)  Franklin  P.  Haymaker  was  born  May  10,  1875. 
He  enjoyed  good  advantages  in  the  way  of  education 
and  training,  attending  the  Ohio  Wesleyan  University, 
and  is  located  in  Pittsburg,  Pa.,  where  he  is  engaged  in 
manufacturing. 

(/)  Abbie  Rosetta  Haymaker  was  born  October  2, 
1885,  and  after  the  usual  home  training  and  educational 
advantages,  she  was  married,  June  27,  1908,  to  J.  Paul 
Teas,  of  Salem,  O.  They  have  a  son,  Jean  Paul  Teas, 
Jr.,  born  December  10,  1910.  Their  home  is  in  Harris- 
burg,  Pa.,  where  Mr.  Teas  is  with  the  McFarland 
Publicity  Company. 

6.  Mary  R.  Haymaker,  sixth  child  and  third  daughter 
of  J.  D.  and  M.  R.  Haymaker,  was  born  April  15,  1846. 
She  was  not  destined  to  live  long;  but  her  short  life  of 
twenty  years  was  a  beautiful  one.  Mary  was  amiable 
and  affectionate,  and  universally  esteemed  and  loved. 
On  Tuesday,  July  24,  1866,  she  went  to  visit  her  sister, 
Mrs.  Stephen  Green,  and  on  Friday  evening  following 
she  passed  into  the  eternal  world.  Her  funeral  was 
largely  attended  from  the  same  church  in  Kent,  in  which 
she  had  publicly  made  profession  of  her  faith  in  Christ, 
just  four  weeks  before. 

7.  James  A.  Haymaker,  seventh  child  and  fourth  son 
of  J.  D.  and  M.  R.  Haymaker,  was  born  June  21,  1848, 
and  died  at  Gunnison,  Colo.,  June  14,  1911.  He  received 
his  education  in  the  district  school  near  Earlville,  and  at 
Mt.  Union  College,  where  he  spent  several  terms.  In 
January,  1865,  when  he  was  between  sixteen  and  seven- 
teen years  of  age,  he  enlisted  in  the  193d  Regiment  Ohio 
Volunteer  Infantry  and  became  one  of  the  "boys  in 
blue,"  ready  to  fight,  or  die,  if  need  be,  in  defense  of  the 
Union.  After  a  few  months  of  active  service  in  Virginia, 
he  wax  mustered  out  August  12,  1865.  Young  Hay- 
maker then  taught  school  for  a  number  of  years.  In 
1871  he  located  a  homestead  in  Butler  County,  Kan., 


n.   JAJMES  83 

and  returned  to  Ohio,  where  he  again  engaged  in 
school-teaching.  On  June  21,  1876,  he  married  in 
Windham,  Portage  County,  Samantha  E.  Wilson,  who 
was  born  July  4,  1851,  in  Northampton,  Summit  County. 
The  next  spring  Mr.  Haymaker  went  with  his  wife  to 
their  Kansas  home,  where  for  a  few  years  they  were 
engaged  in  a  heroic  struggle  with  drought,  cyclones, 
grasshoppers,  and  chinch-bugs.  In  the  spring  of  1882 
we  find  him,  with  wife  and  children,  in  Gunnison, 
Col.  Like  a  true  man  he  was  ready  for  any  honest 
work  that  offered.  He  worked  in  a  sawmill,  at  making 
railroad  ties,  mining,  cooking,  smelting,  blacksmithing, 
prospecting,  ranching,  and  finally  engaged  in  mercantile 
pursuits  in  Gunnison. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Haymaker  have  had  five  children:  1. 
ZiLBA  Maxwell,  born  in  Butler  County,  Kan.,  August 
18,  1877,  2.  Sullivan  W^ilson,  born  on  same  farm  Sep- 
tember 11, 1879,  3.  Crete  Ellene,  born  at  the  same  place 
September  23,  1881,  4.  Joel  Walter,  born  in  Gunnison, 
June  13,  1887,  and  5.  Clara  Llewellyn,  born  in  Gun- 
nison August  16,  1894. 

The  dear  daughter  Crete  lived  only  a  little  more  than 
eight  years.  She  passed  into  the  eternal  world  March  30, 
1890.  Remarkably  endowed  by  nature,  and  exceedingly 
attractive,  she  was  a  great  favorite  with  all. 

In  a  letter  received  from  Mr.  Haymaker,  in  1910,  he 
says,  "Our  present  occupation  is  farming.  I  and  my 
three  sons  own  eight  hundred  and  eighty  acres  of  land  in 
the  Gunnison  River  Valley.  Mrs.  Haymaker  and  myself 
and  our  daughter  Clara  are  members  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church.  We  were  members  of  other  churches 
before  we  came  to  Gunnison,  but  not  finding  the  churches 
of  our  choice  here,  we  joined  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,  for  Christian  fellowship  and  work."  That  was 
surely  the  right  thing  to  do.  Mr.  Haymaker  has  served 
the  public  as  township  trustee,  as  assessor,  and  for  several 


84  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

terms  as  school  director.  In  1908  he  was  honored  with 
the  nomination  for  representative  in  the  legislature  of 
the  state  by  the  Socialists  of  Gunnison  County. 

8.  Clara  L.  Haymaker,  eighth  child  and  fourth 
daughter  of  J.  D.  and  M.  R.  Haymaker,  was  born  August 
30,  1850.  She  spent  her  early  life  in  the  usual  way,  per- 
forming home  duties,  enjoying  home  advantages,  and 
attending  the  district  school.  On  October  21,  1874,  she 
was  married  to  George  B.  Green,  who  was  born  in 
Franklin  township,  November  26,  1851,  and  died  Novem- 
ber 26,  1902.  He  was  the  son  of  Seneca  Green,  one  of 
the  pioneer  settlers  of  the  township.  Mr.  George  Green 
inherited  the  farm  on  which  his  father  had  lived  and  died. 
There  three  children  were  born:  Mabel  A.,  James  S., 
and  Walter  H.  There  too  they  experienced  that  inter- 
mingling of  joy  and  sorrow  which  is  the  common  lot  of 
mortals.  But  their  share  of  trial  and  sorrow  was  more 
than  what  is  common.  For  in  the  summer  of  1890  the 
beloved  wife  and  mother  became  afflicted  with  a  strange 
and  dangerous  form  of  disease.  For  a  long  time  she 
endured  with  Christian  patience  and  heroism  the  severest 
pain.  Of  this  she  was  finally  relieved  by  successful  sur- 
gery. Although  it  left  her  a  cripple  for  life,  her  children 
and  friends  are  thankful  that  the  life  of  one  so  dear  to 
them  was  preserved. 

(a)  Mabel  Almira  Green  was  born  August  28,  1875. 
She  was  graduated  from  the  Kent  High  School  in  1894. 
She  then  taught  school  for  five  years.  On  September  6, 
1899,  she  was  married  to  John  Frank  Merkel,  of 
Stow  township.  He  was  a  native  of  Minnesota.  After 
their  marriage  they  spent  a  year  in  Chicago,  where  Mr. 
Merkel  was  an  engineer.  They  returned  to  Ohio,  and 
settled  on  their  farm  in  Stow  township.  They  have 
two  children:  Lois  Mildred,  born  August  25,  1900,  and 
George  Elliott,  born  July  29,  1903. 

(6)   James  Seneca  Green  was  born  May  5,  1880.     He 


n.    JAMES  85 

was  graduated  from  the  Kent  High  School ;  took  a  partial 
course  in  Buchtel  College,  and  a  full  course  in  a  business 
college,  in  Cleveland.  He  then  entered  the  establish- 
ment of  Williams  Brothers'  Milling  Company  in  Kent. 
He  is  manager  of  this  concern,  which  turns  out  one  thou- 
sand barrels  of  flour  per  day.  He  married  Harriet 
Louise  Reed,  of  Kent,  October  1,  1908,  and  has  built 
a  beautiful  home  on  Main  Street,  which  they  are  now 
occupying. 

(c)  Walter  Haymaker  Green  was  born  February  26, 
1889,  had  a  good  common  school  education,  and  is  now 
(1911)  salesman  in  the  boot  and  shoe  department  of  the 
Diamond  Rubber  Works,  Akron,  O. 

9.  An  infant,  a  son,  that  died  before  it  was  named. 
10.  Almira  E.  Haymaker,  tenth  child  and  fifth 
daughter  of  the  family,  was  born  January  27,  1854. 
Brought  up  in  the  same  pleasant  home,  and  fitted  for  her 
life-work  in  the  same  way  with  her  older  sisters,  she  was 
married.  May  19,  1875,  to  Theodore  H.  Kindice.  He 
was  born  in  Ravenna,  May  17,  1848.  His  father  owned 
a  farm  which  the  son  helped  to  cultivate,  and  so  he 
became  a  farmer.  After  his  marriage  Mr.  Kindice 
rented  farms  for  five  years.  He  then  purchased  one  near 
Earlville,  which  has  been  the  home  of  the  family  ever 
since.     Mr.  and  Mrs.  Kindice  have  a  son,  William  J. 

(a)  William  J.  Kindice,  after  securing  what  education 
circumstances  permitted,  married,  October  15,  1901, 
Abbie  E.  Moore,  a  daughter  of  one  of  the  nearest  neigh- 
bors. Two  children  have  been  born  to  Mr.  and  Mrs, 
Kindice,  Oneta  A.,  born  August  10,  1902,  and  Errol  L., 
born  February  14, 1904. 

After  his  marriage  Mr.  Kindice  tried  different  vocations, 
among  others  steam-shovel  work,  and  firing  on  the  Erie 
Railway.  He  finally  bought  a  small  farm  in  1905.  In 
1908  he  was  working  this  farm,  and  the  larger  one  of  his 
father,  the  one  adjoining  the  other.     When  I  was  in  that 


86  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

neighborhood  in  November,  1909,  Mr.  Kindice  was  absent 
from  home,  working  with  his  steam  shovel-plow,  in 
Illinois,  for  the  Carter  Construction  Company. 

11.  Martha  Amelia  Haymaker,  eleventh  child  and 
sixth  daughter  of  J.  D.  and  M.  R.  Haymaker,  was  born 
May  20,  1856.  Her  training  and  education  were  the 
same  that  her  sisters  had  received,  and  on  Christmas  Day, 
1877,  she  was  married  to  Maxwell  G.  Norton,  who  was 
born  in  Franklin  township,  June  18,  1854.  He  was 
brought  up  on  a  farm;  was  then  engaged  as  clerk  in  a 
store  in  Kent,  and  afterward  as  traveling  salesman  for 
different  firms.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Norton  had  two  children: 
Mary  Jennett,  born  November  16,  1878,  who  was 
married  on  her  birthday,  in  1898,  to  John  Edward  Price. 
Mr.  Price  is  foreman  in  the  Nicholson  File  Shop,  in  Pater- 
son,  N.  J.,  and  in  that  city  is  the  home  of  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Price;  and  Claude  Haymaker,  born  January  12,  1881. 
He  attended  the  public  schools  of  Kent.  For  five  years 
he  was  employed  in  the  American  Tin  Plate  Works  in 
New  York  City.  He  then  traveled  two  years  for  the 
Franco-American  Food  Company,  and  is  now  living  in 
California. 

Mrs.  Norton's  second  husband  is  Frederick  Harry 
ViCKERS,  a  machinist  in  the  employ  of  the  Erie  Railway 
Company.  He  was  born  in  England  December  14,  1844. 
The  family  came  to  this  country  when  he  was  a  child. 
He  grew  up  in  Hudson,  O.  In  1861,  when  the  Union  was 
in  peril,  and  President  Lincoln  was  calling  for  troops, 
Harry  Vickers,  although  very  young,  volunteered,  and 
served,  first,  for  three  months,  in  the  19th  Ohio  Regiment, 
and  then,  during  the  war,  in  the  105th  Ohio  Regiment. 
He  was  wounded  four  times  in  the  battles  of  Chickamauga, 
Missionary  Ridge,  and  Lookout  Mountain.  At  one  time  he 
was,  with  his  regiment,  under  a  steady  fire  of  the  enemy, 
for  two  weeks.  He  was  one  of  the  detail  that  escorted 
the  body  of  Lincoln  from  Washington  to  Cleveland. 


II.    JAMES  87 

Mr.  Vickers  has  two  sons  by  a  former  marriage.  One 
is  a  telegraph  operator  in  Cleveland.  The  other  is  in 
the  tinning  business  in  Kent. 

Mrs.  Vickers  and  her  daughter,  Mrs.  Price,  are  members 
of  the  Universalist  Church. 

12.  Cora  E.  Haymaker,  twelfth  child  and  seventh 
daughter  of  J.  D.  and  M.  R.  Haymaker,  was  born  May  5, 
1858,  and  died  February  2,  1859. 

13.  William  J.  Haymaker,  thirteenth  child  and  sixth 
son  of  J.  D.  and  M.  R.  Haymaker,  was  born  February  2, 
1860.  He  was  reared  on  the  old  home  farm  where  he 
lived  until  1889.  He  attended  the  district  school,  which, 
with  five  terms  in  the  Union  School  at  Kent,  comprised 
his  school-days.  He  rented  his  father's  farm,  and  worked 
it  for  eight  years.  On  March  1,  1882,  he  married  Mary 
L.  Olin,  daughter  of  Elon  and  Ellen  Olin,  of  Streetsboro, 
this  being  a  second  bond  of  union  between  the  Olin  and 
the  Davis-Haymaker  families. 

Mr.  Haymaker  purchased  his  father's  old  farm  in  1900, 
and  maintained  the  home  there  for  his  mother  until  her 
death  in  1907.  He  removed  to  Ravenna  in  1901.  He  has 
never  taken  any  active  part  in  politics,  nor  sought  any 
nomination  but  one,  that  of  city  councilman.  That 
office  he  held  for  three  years,  being  president  of  the 
Council,  and  chairman  of  the  Public  Service  Committee 
for  two  years.  He  was  a  member  of  the  township  school 
board  for  fifteen  years  before  moving  to  Ravenna.  He  is 
engaged  in  no  other  business  than  having  a  general  over- 
sight of  his  two  farms  (Mrs.  Haymaker  having  inherited 
one  from  her  father)  and  his  town  properties  in  Ravenna 
and  Kent. 

On  the  organization  of  the  Civic  League  of  Ravenna, 
Mr.  Haymaker  was  elected  its  first  president.  He  was 
also  a  member  of  the  Executive  Committee  of  the  Local 
Option  Association  of  Portage  County,  which  was  instru- 
mental in  putting  the  saloons  out  of  the  county.     The 


88  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

family  are  now  (1911)  living  in  their  beautiful  home  on 
the  farm  in  Streetsboro, 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Haymaker  have  two  children: 

(a)  FredericIc  E.,  born  October  15,  1883,  was  gradu- 
ated from  the  high  school  of  Ravenna.  He  then  took  a 
four  years'  course  in  the  Ohio  State  University,  gradu- 
ating from  the  department  of  agriculture.  He  then  took 
charge  of  the  old  home  farm  in  Franklin  Township. 

(6)  Elizabeth  Olin,  born  August  2,  1886.  She  was 
graduated  from  the  Ravenna  High  School  with  first 
honors,  and  then  took  a  full  course  in  the  W.  R.  Woman's 
College,  receiving  the  degree  of  A.B.  She  is  a  teacher 
in  the  public  schools  of  Kent. 

14.  Abbie  May  Haymaker,  the  youngest  of  the  family, 
being  the  fourteenth  child  and  eighth  daughter  of  J.  D. 
and  M.  R.  Haymaker,  was  born  November  27,  1863. 
The  district  school  furnished  the  greater  part  of  her  edu- 
cation, which  was  supplemented  at  the  Union  School  in 
Kent.  On  November  23,  1887,  the  old  home  was  once 
more  the  scene  of  wedding  festivities,  when  the  last  of 
this  fine  family  was  married  to  Edmund  W.  Case.  He 
was  born  November  1,  1858,  in  Hudson  Township,  where 
he  was  brought  up  on  his  father's  farm,  until,  when 
sixteen  years  of  age,  he  went  to  Hudson,  and  learned  to  be 
a  carpenter  and  joiner.  He  found  employment  in  Hudson, 
Cleveland,  and  Kent,  coming  to  the  last  place  in  1880. 
Here  he  was  employed  for  some  time  in  the  car  shops  of 
the  Erie  Railway.  He  then  worked  at  his  trade  in  Kent 
and  vicinity  until  1900,  when  he  moved  to  South  Haven, 
Mich.  In  1906  our  friends  moved  to  Pasadena,  Cal., 
where  they  still  reside.  Their  only  child,  Lona,  was  born 
October  15,  1892,  in  the  "old  home,"  where  her  mother 
was  born.  She  is  attending  school  in  Pasadena.  The 
parents  are  members  of  the  Universalist  Church. 


III.    WILLIAM 

William  Davis,  the  younger,  was  the  third  child  of 
Wilham  and  Mary  Means  Davis,  and  was  born  April 
22,  1762,  in  Tinicum  Township,  Bucks  County,  Pa. 
Soon  after  the  Revolutionary  War,  that  is,  in  1784,  when 
the  younger  William  was  twelve  years  old,  his  father  sold 
his  Bucks  County  farm,  and  moved  to  Franklin  County, 
Pa.  He  purchased  a  large  farm  near  Strasburg,  and 
lived  on  it  until  1795,  when  he  moved  farther  West. 
The  son  William  remained  on  the  farm.  Another  son, 
Henry,  also  remained  in  Franklin  County,  his  home  being 
at  Strasburg. 

On  November  23,  1786,  William  Davis  and  Sarah 
Stew^art  were  married  by  the  Rev.  James  Grier.  They 
were  members  of  the  Rocky  Spring  Presbyterian  Church, 
and  with  their  family  were  regular  attendants  under  three 
successive  pastors,  viz.:  Rev.  John  Craighead,  Rev. 
Francis  Herron,  afterward  pastor  of  the  First  Presby- 
terian Church  of  Pittsburg,  and  Rev.  Dr.  John  McKnight, 
who  had  been  for  many  years  a  pastor  in  the  city  of  New 
York.  The  quaint  old  brick  church,  erected  in  1794,  is 
still  standing.  The  Scotch-Irish  Congress  of  America, 
when  meeting  in  Chambersburg,  a  few  years  ago,  held  a 
religious  service  out  at  Rocky  Spring.  Of  this  church 
William  Davis,  the  younger,  was  an  elder  for  many 
years.  The  only  time  I  ever  attended  church  there,  so 
far  as  I  can  recollect,  was  in  the  summer  of  1842.  After 
the  service  I  went  into  the  graveyard  to  see  the  graves  of 
my  grandparents,  which  I  easily  found,  marked  as  they 
were  by  appropriate  stones.  My  grandfather  died 
October  6,  1823.  That  was  the  "fall  of  the  sickness," 
which  was  so  often  referred  to  when  I  was  young.  My 
grandmother  died  April  12,  1825. 

The  children  of  William  and  Sarah  Davis  were  seven  in 


90  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

number:   1.  William  S.,  2.  Robert,  3.  Joseph,  4.  Eliza- 
beth, 5.  James,  6.  John,  7.  Mary. 

A.  William  Stewart  Davis  (William  the  third)  born 
February  19,  1788,  grew  up  on  the  farm,  obtaining  such 
an  education  as  was  then  possible  in  rural  communities. 
He  was  a  thoughtful,  earnest  young  man,  fond  of  books 
and  reading,  and  largely  self-educated.  When  grown 
up  he  went  to  Charabersburg  to  learn  surveying  under 
Thomas  Kirby,  Esq.  On  December  29,  1812,  my  father 
married  Joanna  Kirby,  the  eldest  of  the  four  living 
daughters  of  Mr.  Kirby.  She  was  in  her  twentieth  year, 
my  father  being  nearly  twenty-five.  They  were  married 
by  the  Rev.  James  Walker,  of  the  "Seceder"  Church, 
which  was  the  church  of  my  maternal  grandparents. 

Mr.  Kirby,  my  maternal  grandfather,  was  a  noted 
schoolmaster  in  Chambersburg  from  1790  until  his  death 
in  1815.  The  family  to  which  he  belonged  had  come 
from  Wales,  and  settled  in  Virginia.  There  Thomas  was 
born  in  1757.  When  he  was  twenty-one  years  of  age, 
and  possessed  of  a  good  education  for  that  day,  he  crossed 
the  Potomac,  entered  Pennsylvania,  and  engaged  in 
school-teaching  on  the  Warm  Spring  Road,  about  five 
miles  west  of  Chambersburg.  Among  his  pupils  was  a 
pretty  lass  of  eleven  named  Jean  Withney.  As  time 
wore  on,  Jean  grew  more  and  more  attractive,  and  Thomas 
fell  in  love  with  her.  That  Cupid  was  an  active  assistant 
in  that  schoolroom  is  evident  from  the  fact  that  the 
teacher  indited  to  Jean,  when  she  was  but  thirteen,  two 
love-songs  which  are  still  extant,  one  dated  June  20,  1780, 
the  other  August  26  of  the  same  year. 

Jean's  father,  William  Withney,  and  his  young  bride, 
Nancy  Bryan,  were  among  the  Scotch-Irish  Presbyterians 
who  came  to  this  country  between  1760  and  1765.  He 
located  a  farm  on  the  Warm  Spring  Road,  a  portion  of 
which  is  now  owned  by  Henry  Lenherr.     There  he  lived 


WILLIAM     STEWART    DAVIS 


m.    WILLIAM  91 

and  raised  his  family.  This  consisted  of  Arthur,  who 
married  Mary  Wise  and  lived  in  Hagerstown;  Jean,  who 
became  the  wife  of  Thomas  Kirby;  Elizabeth,  who  mar- 
ried John  Kennan;  Agnes,  who  married  William  Arm- 
strong, and  lived  in  Greencastle;  and  John,  who  lived  and 
died  a  bachelor. 

John  Kennan  was  a  farm  hand  employed  by  William 
W^ithney.  One  night  Patrick  Jack,  a  neighbor,  came 
over  to  inquire  whether  any  one  was  ill,  as  he  heard  the 
whinnying  of  one  of  the  Withney  horses  going  rapidly  to 
town,  and  he  thought  some  one  must  be  going  for  the 
doctor.  Investigation  showed  that  a  horse  was  missing, 
as  well  as  John  Kennan  and  Elizabeth,  one  of  the  daugh- 
ters of  the  house.  The  next  morning  it  appeared  that 
they  had  gone  to  town,  sought  the  services  of  a  minister, 
and  returned  home  husband  and  wife.  The  eloping 
couple  were  soon  forgiven,  and,  over  the  customary  liba- 
tion, the  matter  was  amicably  settled. 

John  and  Elizabeth  went  to  the  "Back  Woods,"  find- 
ing their  way  to  what  afterward  became  Belmont  County, 
Ohio.  There  they  battled  with  rattlesnakes  and  hard 
times.  Their  son  William  went  to  the  county-seat,  St. 
Clairsville,  became  a  lawyer,  a  member  of  Congress,  and 
a  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Ohio.  From  the  Ken- 
nans  are  descended  the  McPhersons,  of  Cambridge,  and 
the  Underbills  and  Dunhams  of  Cincinnati. 

Thomas  Kirby  married  Jean  Withney  in  1784  and  went 
to  Hagerstown,  Md.  Here  were  born  to  them  three 
children,  all  of  whom  died  young.  They  then  moved  to 
Chambersburg,  Pa.,  where  Mr.  Kirby  found  a  wider  field 
for  the  exercise  of  his  scholastic  attainments.  He  opened 
a  school  on  Queen  Street,  and  soon  had  as  many  pupils 
as  he  could  properly  instruct.  The  young  men  of  Cham- 
bersburg who  wished  to  go  to  college  were  fitted  for  it 
by  him.  Among  his  pupils  was  George  Chambers,  after- 
ward   Judge  of    the  Supreme   Court  of    Pennsylvania. 


92  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

Mr.  Kirby  is  said  to  have  been  the  best  penman,  and  to 
have  had  the  best  library  in  Chambersburg.  He  was 
made  a  Justice  of  the  Peace,  and  served  for  a  number  of 
years.  From  1804  to  1809  he  was  the  County  Surveyor. 
He  died  in  1815,  and  Mrs.  Kirby  followed  him  in  1835. 
Their  graves  are  in  the  Falling  Spring  Cemetery. 

After  their  removal  to  Chambersburg  four  daughters 
and  one  son  were  born  to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Kirby:  Joanna 
in  1793;  Jane  in  1795;  Jemima  in  1800;  Martha  in  1806; 
and  James  Ross  (named  after  a  noted  Pennsylvania 
educator)  in  1809.  My  father,  Wm.  S.  Davis,  married 
Joanna,  December  29,  1812.  Jane  was  married,  January 
22,  1816,  to  Silas  Harry,  a  stone-mason  and  builder  of 
the  best  bridges  in  the  county.  He  was  from  Chester 
County,  Pa.  In  1830  Jemima  became  Mrs.  John  Cree. 
Mr.  Cree  was  a  furniture  dealer  from  Huntingdon  County, 
and  one  of  the  most  active  and  useful  Christian  men  in 
Chambersburg.  Martha  was  married  to  William  Gilmore, 
from  Cumberland  County,  a  merchant-tailor,  then  a  pub- 
lic official,  such  as  postmaster,  sheriff,  etc.  He  was  a  con- 
spicuous figure  also  at  the  head  of  the  military  forces  of  the 
county  on  the  annual  muster-days  in  the  month  of  May. 

The  four  sisters  and  their  brother,  who  married  Rebecca 
Seibert,  remained  in  Chambersburg;  all  reared  families, 
and  what  jolly  times  we  cousins  had  growing  up  together! 
The  Kirby  sisters  were  all  clever,  intelligent,  and  witty; 
amiable  and  hospitable,  with  plenty  of  Scotch-Irish 
humor,  full  of  fun  and  laughter,  making  their  homes 
attractive  centers  of  good  fellowship,  and  withal  good 
Christian  women,  devoted  to  their  Lord  and  Master  and 
their  church. 

William  S.  Davis  was  an  active,  public-spirited  and 
useful  citizen.  He  had  the  respect  and  confidence  of  the 
people,  and  did  a  large  amount  of  business  as  executor, 
administrator,  trustee,  guardian,  and  the  like.  He  was 
a  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  many  years,  and  County  Sur- 


.  m.    WILLL\M  93 

veyor  for  several  terms.  As  such,  he  became  familiar 
with  every  part  of  the  county,  and  acquainted  with  a 
great  many  people.  He  constructed  and  published  an 
excellent  map  of  Franklin  County.  At  the  time  of  his 
decease  he  was  cashier  of  the  Chambersburg  Savings 
Bank,  of  which  he  was  one  of  the  organizers.  As  an  elder 
of  the  Falling  Spring  Presbyterian  Church  he  was  highly 
esteemed  and  honored.  In  the  prime  of  life,  and  in  the 
midst  of  useful  and  honorable  activities,  he  lost  his  life, 
through  an  illness  brought  on  by  exposure  in  the  dis- 
charge of  his  duties  as  surveyor.  He  passed  away  from 
earth  on  the  morning  of  May  4,  1837.  Although  I  have 
not  the  fine  tribute  paid  to  his  life  and  character  in  the 
Franklin  Repository,  I  have  never  forgotten  that  it  began 
with  Pope's  line, 

"An  honest  man's  the  noblest  work  of  God." 

After  the  marriage  of  my  father  and  Joanna  Kirby,  he 
taught  school  for  a  time  in  McDowell's  schoolhouse,  not 
far  from  St.  Thomas,  Franklin  County.  During  the  time 
of  their  sojourn  there,  their  first  child  was  born  —  a  son 
named  William  Vanlear,  after  his  father,  and  a  friend 
living  in  that  vicinity. 

My  mother  had  very  little  school  education,  but  she 
was  self-educated.  She  was  very  fond  of  reading,  and 
read  the  best  books  available,  remembered  what  she  read, 
and  was  always  interesting  in  imparting  information. 
WTien  she  traveled  she  was  a  close  observer  of  men  and 
things,  became  acquainted  with  people,  and  had  a  great 
amount  of  information  to  communicate  to  her  friends  on 
her  return.  She  loved  young  people,  and  as  she  grew 
older  kept  in  touch  with  them.  After  her  children  had  all 
gone  to  homes  of  their  own,  she  generally  had  with  her 
one  or  more  young  friends,  who  always  found  delightful 
companionship  in  their  "aunt"  or  "grandma"  Davis. 

My  mother  lived  in  her  own  home  on  Queen  Street  till 


94  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

1864  —  the  year  of  her  death.  Chambersburg,  being 
near  the  border,  was  subject  to  raids  from  Virginia  during 
the  Civil  War.  She  was  much  disturbed  by  those,  and 
to  escape  one  of  them  she  sought  refuge  with  us  in  Middle- 
town.  She  was  mercifully  called  to  her  heavenly  home 
just  in  time  to  escape  the  destructive  raid  by  McCaus- 
land's  troops,  when  the  larger  and  better  portion  of 
Chambersburg  was  burned  —  my  mother's  house  and  its 
contents  with  the  rest. 

William  Stewart  and  Joanna  Davis  had  nine  children, 
as  follows:  1.  William  V.,  2,  Jane  K.,  3.  Sarah,  4.  Eliza- 
beth, 5.  Martha,  6.  Thomas  K.,  7.  Joanna,  8.  Robert 
S.,  and  9.  Mary  S. 

1.  William  Vanlear  Davis  (William  the  fourth)  was 
born  October  9,  1813.  He  grew  up  in  Chambersburg, 
enjoying  better  educational  advantages  than  his  fathers 
before  him.  His  best  teacher,  and  the  one  who  made 
him  a  remarkably  fine  teacher  himself,  was  the  Rev. 
Samuel  Wylie  Crawford,  a  minister  of  the  Reformed 
Presbyterian  Church,  who  was  at  that  time  principal  of 
the  Chambersburg  Academy,  and  afterwards  a  more 
widely  known  and  eminent  teacher  in  Philadelphia. 
Vanlear  pursued  his  college  course  at  Washington  College, 
Washington,  Pa.  On  September  9,  1834,  he  married 
Catherine  Wilson  Acheson,  of  a  distinguished  Wash- 
ington family.  Although  he  studied  law  under  Judge 
Alexander  Thomson,  of  Chambersburg,  with  such  fellow- 
students  as  Vice-President  Hendricks,  and  United  States 
Senator  John  Scott,  and  had  talent  enough  to  have 
succeeded  well  in  the  profession  he  never  practised  law, 
but  remained  a  teacher  all  his  life,  first  as  principal  of  the 
Chambersburg  Academy,  and  afterward  as  principal  of 
the  Male  High  School,  in  Lancaster,  Pa.  Here  he  died 
February  1,  1874,  in  the  sixty-first  year  of  his  age,  and 
was  buried  in  the  Lancaster  Cemetery. 


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MRS.    A,    H.    S  E  N  S  E  N  Y  WILLIAM    STEWART    DAVIS 


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A.    II.    S  E  N  S  E  N  Y,    M,  D. 


WILLIAM    V.   DAVIS 


m.    ^\TLLIAJM  95 

The  Lancaster  Daily  Express  said:  "Our  community 
was  thro\sTi  into  no  ordinary  gloom  by  the  announcement 
that  IVIr.  William  V.  Davis  had  breathed  his  last.  .  .  . 
The  hundreds  of  boys  now  grown  to  manhood  in  this 
city  who  sat  under  his  kind,  fatherly  instruction  during 
the  long  years  that  he  occupied  the  position  of  principal 
of  the  Male  High  School,  could  scarcely  realize  the 
announcement,  for  all  felt  toward  him  as  they  would 
toward  a  faithful  parent.  As  a  teacher  it  is  perhaps  not 
saying  too  much  to  assert  that  he  was  without  a  superior 
in  the  country.  Calm,  patient,  dignified  —  gentle,  yet 
firm,  he  had  a  most  genial  and  attractive  manner,  draw- 
ing all  persons  to  him."  A  Chambersburg  paper  said: 
"For  many  years  he  taught  with  great  success  and  bril- 
liancy, almost  every  one  of  the  educated  men  of  this 
place  having  been  trained  under  his  care.  His  system 
was  thorough,  no  scholar  being  too  dull  to  be  brightened, 
and  none  too  bright  to  be  polished,  under  his  wonderful 
tuition.  The  youth  that  passed  from  his  mastership  to 
the  colleges  always  took  high  position  in  these  institutions, 
and  it  was  the  common  observation  of  the  professors  that 
the  pupils  of  Mr.  Davis  were  more  thoroughly  grounded 
and  trained  than  any  others  that  entered  their  halls. 
There  were  no  royal  roads  or  short  cuts  in  the  paths  of 
knowledge  over  which  he  presided.  His  boys  had  to 
know  and  understand  the  route  as  they  traveled  it,  and 
when  they  attained  this  knowledge  and  understanding 
they  were  in  possession  of  them  forever.  Their  course 
was  steady  and  rapid.  We  can  name  men  now  promi- 
nent in  all  the  professions  who  are  proud  to  assign  to  him 
the  honor  of  their  education. 

An  attractive  and  delightful  companion,  he  was  a 
general  favorite.  His  handsome  person,  winning  smile, 
and  musical  voice  were  gifts  bestowed  upon  few.  Well 
read  in  classical  and  modern  literature,  brilliant  as  a  wit 
and  humorist,  he  impressed  himself  upon  all  who  met 


90  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

him.  Wherever  he  went  he  made  friends  who  never 
forsook  him." 

Catharine  Acheson  Davis,  his  wife,  was  a  faithful,  noble 
Christian  lady,  a  devoted  wife  and  mother,  intelligent 
and  attractive  in  society.  The  late  Dr.  Dundas  told  me, 
some  years  ago,  that  when  he  was  a  student  at  Washing- 
ton, he  was  present  at  the  wedding  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis, 
and  he  thought  he  "never  in  his  life  saw  a  handsomer 
couple  standing  up  to  be  married."  This  excellent  and 
beloved  lady  died  at  her  home  in  Lancaster  December  17, 
1886,  and  was  buried  beside  her  husband. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  were  members  of  the  First  Presby- 
terian Church  of  Lancaster. 

Their  children  were  eleven  in  number,  viz. :  1.  Mary  A., 
2.  William,  3.  Joanna  K.,  4.  David  A.,  5.  Jane  S,,  6. 
Ellen,  7.  Lucy,  8.  George,  9.  Katharine  W.,  10. 
Margaret  M.,  11.  Annie  M. 

1.  Mary  Acheson  Davis,  born  in  Chambersburg  (as 
were  all  the  children),  was  a  very  sweet  and  lovable  girl, 
who  brightened  the  home,  and  was  esteemed  and  loved 
by  all  who  knew  her.  She  was  a  teacher  in  the  Lancaster 
schools,  faithful  and  useful.  But  she  passed  into  a 
brighter  realm  to  be  with  the  Lord  she  loved,  November  9, 
1872. 

2.  William  Davis,  the  fifth  William,  died  in  infancy. 

3.  Joanna  Kirby  Davis,  a  bright  and  promising  girl, 
was  not  destined  to  live  the  long  life  which  all  her  loving 
friends  hoped  might  be  her  lot.  She  was  married  in  1873 
to  George  Watson  of  a  most  estimable  family  in  Cham- 
bersburg, and  died  in  that  place  on  May  3,  1875. 

4.  David  Acheson  Davis,  the  second  son,  named 
after  his  maternal  grandfather,  died  in  infancy. 

5.  Jane  Senseny  Davis,  the  third  daughter,  like  all 
her  sisters,  had  a  good  education,  became  a  fine  Christian 
young  woman,  faithful  in  all  her  relations  and  duties. 
She   survived   her   parents   for   some   years,   was   home- 


ra.    WILLIAM  97 

mother  and  home-maker  at  the  family  residence  in  Lan- 
caster, where  she  died  November  15,  1897. 

6.  Ellen  Davis  was  a  very  pretty  and  lovable  child, 
but  it  pleased  God  to  call  her  to  himself  when  she  was 
about  three  years  of  age. 

7.  Lucy  Davis,  well  educated  and  trained,  grew  up  to 
a  beautiful  and  attractive  womanhood.  She  was  married 
to  Major  Adam  Cyrus  Reinohl  of  Lancaster.  He  was 
a  graduate  of  Franklin  and  Marshall  College,  was  an 
oflBcer  in  the  Union  Army  during  the  Civil  War,  and 
became  a  prominent  citizen  of  Lancaster,  of  which  city 
he  was  the  postmaster  for  some  years,  while  Mrs.  Reinohl 
graced  the  position  which  she  held  in  the  church  and  in 
society.  They  were  members  of  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church.  Their  children  were  four  in  number:  1.  Walter 
A.,  2.  Mary  A.,  3.  Gertrude  L.,  4.  Albert  R.  All  were 
born  in  the  home  on  Duke  Street. 

(a)  Walter  Allen  Reinohl  was  educated  in  private 
schools  and  was  graduated  with  honors  from  Franklin 
and  Marshall  College.  He  then  pursued  graduate  studies 
in  the  University  of  Minnesota,  and  read  law  under  the 
Hon.  John  P.  Rea,  of  Minneapolis.  For  eight  or  more 
years  he  has  held  a  fine  position  in  the  United  States 
Revenue  OflSce,  at  Pittsburg. 

(6)  ]VL\.RY  Acheson  Reinohl  was  educated  in  private 
schools  in  Lancaster,  and  at  the  Hollidaysburg  Female 
Seminary.  She  became  a  charter-member  of  the  Iris 
Club  of  Lancaster.  On  January  31,  1900,  she  became 
the  wife  of  Walter  Wishart  Macfarren,  of  Pittsburg. 
They  were  wedded  in  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  of 
Lancaster  by  the  pastor,  Rev.  Dr.  James  Y.  Mitchell. 

Mr.  Macfarren  was  born  in  Pittsburg,  and  educated 
at  Pennsylvania  State  College  and  at  the  University  of 
Pittsburg.  His  profession  is  that  of  a  mechanical  engi- 
neer. His  father  was  Samuel  James  Macfarren,  and  his 
mother    Caroline    McClurg.     His    grandparents    on    the 


98  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

maternal  side  were  William  T.  McClurg  and  Mary  Eason. 
His  grandfather  was  born  in  Pittsburg  in  1799.  He 
traveled  around  the  world.  His  great-grandfather 
McClurg  was  a  fine  old  Irish  gentleman  who  came  to  this 
country  in  1798  the  year  of  the  great  but  unsuccessful 
Irish  rebellion  against  the  British  Government.  There 
is  a  quite  romantic  story  of  his  escape  from  the  King's 
soldiers,  and  safe  arrival  in  America.  His  foundry,  built 
where  the  old  Garrison  foundry  now  is,  was  the  first 
foundry  built  west  of  the  Alleghany  Mountains.  He 
made  the  cannon-balls  that  were  used  in  Perry's  battle 
with  the  British  on  Lake  Erie.  When  Lafayette  visited 
Pittsburg  in  1824  William  T.  McClurg  was  on  the  recep- 
tion committee. 

I  am  sorry  that  I  have  not  received  a  record  of  the 
Macfarren  side  of  the  house.  But  one  who  knew  her, 
says  of  the  grandmother  on  that  side,  "She  was  a  very 
handsome  and  interesting  old  lady,"  so  that  Walter  and 
Mary  are  of  good  stock  on  both  sides,  and  we  expect  them 
to  live  a  noble  life,  and  to  rear  a  family  that  will  be  a  joy 
to  them,  and  a  blessing  to  the  world. 

Their  children  are:  1.  Dorothy  Wood  Macfarren,  2. 
Richard  Acheson  Macfarren,  3.  Gwendolyn  Davis 
Macfarren,  4.  Walter  Wish  art  Macfarren.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Macfarren  are  members  of  the  Shadyside 
Presbyterian  Church,  of  Pittsburg. 

(c)  Gertrude  Laughlin  Reinohl  was  educated  in 
the  private  schools  of  Lancaster,  and  "finished"  at  Miss 
Marshall's  School  in  Philadelphia.  She  is  a  member  of 
the  First  Presbyterian  Church,  and  is  a  very  agreeable 
and  attractive  young  lady. 

{d)  Albert  Riegel  Reinohl  was  educated  in  the 
private  and  public  schools  of  Lancaster,  and  is  a  member 
of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church.  He  has  a  fine  position 
in  the  Hamilton  Watch  Company,  of  Lancaster,  and  is 
an  active  member  of  the  Y.  M.  C.  A. 


m.   WILLIAM  99 

8.  George  Davis,  a  beautiful  and  promising  child,  as 
I  remember  him,  died  in  infancy. 

9.  KL\THARiNE  Wilson  Davis  from  an  early  age  has 
lived  in  Washington,  D.  C.  She  became  a  member 
of  the  New  York  Avenue  Presbyterian  Church  in  1875, 
and,  on  October  6,  1880,  was  married  to  Francis  Virgil 
Walker.  An  intelligent  and  cultured  lady,  Mrs.  Walker 
is  the  very  agreeable  mistress  of  a  pleasant  home  in 
Washington. 

Mr.  Walker,  a  native  of  Maine,  is  chief  clerk  in  the 
pay  office  of  the  Navy  Department,  at  Washington, 
which  position  he  has  held  for  many  years.  This  tells 
the  story  of  his  integrity,  efficiency,  and  devotion  to 
duty. 

(a)  Marcus  Acheson  Walker,  their  only  child,  was 
born  September  24,  1881.  He  was  named  after  his  grand- 
uncle,  the  Hon.  Marcus  Acheson,  many  years  Judge  of  the 
United  States  District  Court  at  Pittsburg.  He  was  pre- 
pared for  college  in  the  public  schools  of  Washington,  and 
was  graduated  from  Lehigh  University,  Bethlehem,  Pa. 

On  April  12,  1910,  he  married,  at  her  home  in  Wasliing- 
ton,  Harriet  Naomi  Hoover,  a  most  excellent  young 
lady.  They  reside  at  Lansford,  Pa.,  where  Mr.  Walker 
is  engaged  as  a  mechanical  engineer,  in  the  service  of  the 
Lehigh  Coal  and  Navigation  Company. 

10.  IVLoiGARET  McKnight  Davis,  since  the  death  of 
her  sister  Jane,  has  been  the  faithful  and  efficient  home- 
maker  at  the  family  residence  in  Lancaster.  She  is  a 
member  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church. 

11.  Annie  Morrison  Davis,  the  youngest,  but  not 
the  least  stirring  and  vivacious  of  the  family,  lives  in 
Washington,  D.  C,  having  a  position  in  the  United  States 
Census  Bureau.  She  is  a  member  of  the  New  York 
Avenue  Presbyterian  Church,  has  sterling  qualities  of 
head  and  heart,  is  good  company  at  all  times,  and  is 
deserving  of  great  credit  for  her  energy  and  perseverance. 


100  THE   DAVIS    FAMILY 

2.  Jane  Kirby  Davis,  second  child  of  W.  S.  and  J.  K. 
Davis,  was  born  November  21,  1815,  She  received  a 
good  education,  and  was  married,  January  16,  1838,  to 
Dr.  Abraham  Hoover  Senseny  of  Chambersburg.  Dr. 
Senseny  died  July  17,  1879,  in  the  sixty-eighth  year  of  his 
age.  Mrs.  Senseny  died  in  August,  1896,  in  her  eighty- 
first  year. 

Sister  Jane  was  a  woman  of  a  quiet  but  very  pleasing 
manner.  She  had  a  superior  mind,  but  the  spiritual 
part  of  her  nature  as  being  the  basis  of  disposition  and 
character,  was  regarded  by  her  as  more  important  than 
the  intellectual.  Her  mind  was  cultivated  and  stored 
with  knowledge,  but  her  spirituality  was  predominant. 
As  a  daughter,  wife,  mother,  sister,  friend,  she  was  a 
model.  She  had  far  more  than  the  ordinary  share  of 
aflBiction,  in  losing  six  of  her  children,  four  of  them  sons 
in  the  prime  of  their  manhood,  and  a  noble  husband. 

But  no  one  would  have  known  it  from  anything  in  her 
appearance  or  manner  —  such  equanimity,  such  a  kindly, 
cheerful  spirit  had  she  attained.  In  an  obituary,  which 
appeared  in  a  Chambersburg  paper,  it  was  said:  "Mrs. 
Senseny  was  a  member  of  the  Falling  Spring  Presbyterian 
Church,  and  very  active  in  the  work  of  the  congregation. 
She  was  happy  in  possessing  the  esteem  of  a  large  number 
of  friends.  Sympathetic  and  helpful,  there  are  many 
who  remember  with  warmest  gratitude  the  numerous 
kindly  services  she  rendered  them.  .  .  .  She  was  a  woman 
of  brilliant  literary  parts;  an  omnivorous  reader,  and 
assimilated  all  she  read.  She  had  written  many  essays 
and  historical  articles,  which  were  marked  by  depth  of 
thought  and  an  ornate  style  which  were  thoroughly 
enjoyed  by  all  who  were  privileged  to  hear  them.  Un- 
fortunately these  were  few,  for  Mrs.  Senseny  depreciated 
her  talents,  and  allowed  only  her  very  intimate  friends  to 
peruse  the  written  pages.  Her  death  is  mourned  by  many." 

Dr.   Alfred   Nevin's   "Men   of   Mark   of   Cumberland 


m.    WILLIAM  101 

Valley"  contains  a  sketch  of  Dr.  A.  H.  Senseny  —  a  por- 
tion of  which  I  will  give.  He  was  born  in  Chambersburg 
August  25,  1811,  and  received  his  education  in  the  famous 
Academy  of  that  town.  He  was  graduated  in  medicine 
from  the  Jefferson  Medical  College,  Philadelphia,  in  1835, 
and  began  the  active  practice  of  his  profession  in  his 
native  town  the  same  year.  He  continued  to  practise 
uninterruptedly  for  forty-three  years,  and  won  a  reputa- 
tion as  wide  as  the  state.  His  father  and  grandfather 
had  practised  in  Chambersburg  before  him,  for  a  great 
many  years.  "We  have  no  doubt  that  he  has  had  a 
larger  and  more  varied  experience  than  any  other  physi- 
cian who  has  ever  practised  in  his  neighborhood.  For 
more  than  forty  weary  years  he  has  labored  with  scarce 
a  relaxation,  practising  all  the  branches  of  his  profession, 
adding  luster  to  the  family  name,  which  for  almost  one 
hundred  years  has  been  renowned  in  the  medical  annals 
of  Franklin  County.  He  was  an  occasional  contributor 
to  the  medical  journals,  was  an  habitual  reader  of  new 
medical  publications,  and  somehow  found  time  for  the 
perusal  of  leading  works  in  literature,  for  which  he  had 
a  decided  taste. 

"  The  peculiar  characteristics  of  Dr.  Senseny  are  quick- 
ness and  acuteness  of  perception,  promptness  of  action, 
and  unwearying  energy.  With  intuition  he  perceives 
the  nature  of  a  disease,  and  with  great  rapidity  brings 
his  resources  to  bear  upon  its  relief. 

"The  Doctor  is  eminently  a  social  personage  of  strong 
attachments  and  prepossessions.  In  the  case  of  the 
seriously  sick,  he  is  all  gentleness  and  affection,  but 
emphatic  and  positive  to  the  querulous  and  inter- 
meddling. No  member  of  his  community  is  more  quoted 
for  racy  anecdotes  and  quaint  and  pungent  sayings.  His 
great  reputation  fills  his  rooms  with  patients,  takes  him 
long  journeys  from  home  in  consultations,  and  draws 
numbers  of  students  to  his  office." 


102  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

All  business  was  suspended  in  Chambersburg  on  the 
occasion  of  Dr.  Senseny's  funeral,  and  the  whole  town 
and  county  mourned  his  death. 

The  children  of  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Senseny  were  as  follows: 
1.  William  D.,  2.  Alexander  H,,  3.  Benjamin  R.,  4. 
Edgar  N.,  5.  Kate  E.,  6.  George  M.,  7.  Alice  D.,  8. 
Jeannette. 

1.  William  Davis  Senseny  was  born  November  9, 
1838.  He  was  educated  at  the  Chambersburg  Academy, 
and  was  graduated  from  the  Jefferson  Medical  College, 
Philadelphia.  He  was  a  young  man  of  sweet  disposition, 
noble  character,  and  fine  talents,  and  gave  promise  of 
becoming  a  worthy  successor  of  his  father.  But  in  con- 
sequence of  too  close  application  to  his  studies,  and  ex- 
posure on  a  cold,  raw  day,  to  witness  the  launching  of  a 
vessel,  after  a  brief  illness  he  passed  away  on  May  17, 
1861,  a  short  time  after  his  graduation. 

2.  Alexander  Hamilton  Senseny  was  born  Septem- 
ber 26,  1840,  and  died  July  17,  1866.  From  his  birth  he 
had  a  heart  trouble  which  affected  his  health  and  activity. 
But  he  had  a  fine  mind  and  profited  by  such  educational 
advantages  as  his  health  permitted.  He  taught  for  some 
time  at  home,  and  for  a  time  in  Kelso's  Academy,  at  Dan- 
ville, Pa.  He  had  a  talent  for  journalism,  and  was  a  fre- 
quent contributor  to  the  newspapers.  "Aleck"  was 
naturally  serious  and  thoughtful,  and  being  converted  at  a 
revival  meeting  in  the  United  Brethren  Church,  he 
united  with  that  denomination  and  became  deeply 
religious  in  spirit  and  thoroughly  Christian  in  his  life. 

3.  Benjamin  Rush  Senseny  was  born  December  12, 
1842,  and  died  March  28,  1880.  He  was  handicapped 
from  early  life  by  hip  disease,  but  notwithstanding  this, 
and  consequent  lameness,  he  was  one  of  the  strongest  and 
most  stirring  and  venturesome  boys  in  the  town.  After 
taking  an  academical  course,  he  studied  medicine  under 
his  father.     In  1862,  at  the  age  of  twenty,  he  went  before 


III.    WILLL\M  103 

a  board  of  army  surgeons  in  Philadelphia,  and,  passing 
a  creditable  examination,  was  ordered  to  Cherry  Hill 
Hospital.  From  that  he  was  transferred  to  Jefferson 
Barracks,  below  St.  Louis;  then  to  a  hospital  in  St.  Louis. 
While  there  he  attended  lectures  in  Pope's  Medical  Col- 
lege, and  was  graduated  from  that  institution  in  1864. 
In  that  year  he  was  ordered  to  Chambersburg,  Pa.,  to 
take  charge  of  the  hospital  there,  and  he  remained  at 
that  post  till  the  close  of  the  war.  During  that  time, 
fifteen  hundred  soldiers,  principally  convalescents  from 
the  Army  of  the  Potomac,  were  under  his  care.  On 
March  22, 1865,  he  married  Rosalie  Johnston  Murdock, 
of  St.  Louis,  Mo.  He  practised  medicine  in  Chambers- 
burg until  1868,  when,  broken  in  health,  he  went  to  Cali- 
fornia. Shortly  after  his  arrival  on  the  Pacific  coast, 
he  went  to  White  Pines,  Nev.  At  that  place  he  was 
appointed  president  of  the  Board  of  Health;  and  during 
a  terrible  epidemic  of  Asiatic  smallpox  among  the 
miners  of  that  region,  he  frequently  performed  the  duties 
of  doctor,  minister,  and  sexton.  Returning  to  Chambers- 
burg, he  spent  the  latter  years  of  his  life  in  the  practice 
of  medicine,  and  the  propagation  of  bovine  virus,  in  which 
business  he  was  very  enthusiastic.  In  1877  he  became 
a  member  of  the  Falling  Spring  Presbyterian  Church, 
under  the  pastoral  care  of  Dr.  Agnew  Crawford. 

Dr.  Rush  Senseny  was  a  talented  man,  endowed  with 
many  fine  qualities  of  head  and  heart.  He  was  calculated 
to  win  the  confidence  and  esteem  of  people  anywhere; 
but  it  was  shown  remarkably  during  his  several  years' 
sojourn  among  the  miners  and  others  in  the  West.  Bold, 
energetic,  enterprising,  approachable,  affable,  and  kind- 
hearted,  he  was  quickly  in  touch  with  the  wild  moun- 
taineers. They  honored  him  with  positions  of  trust  and 
responsibility.  His  professional  knowledge  and  skill 
were  constantly  sought,  and  freely  and  unselfishly 
given. 


104  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

It  was  his  lot,  during  the  closing  years  of  his  life  on 
earth,  to  endure  great  sufferings.  These  he  bore  with 
calmness  and  fortitude.  Often,  when  racked  with  intense 
pain,  he  would  converse  with  friends,  with  a  smile  upon 
his  face,  and  in  a  most  animated  and  affable  manner. 
His  self-control  was  marvelous. 

The  crowning  beauty  of  his  character  was  the  strong 
religious  conviction  and  deep  and  earnest  piety  which 
mellowed  the  last  two  years  of  his  life.  He  had  set  his 
house  in  order.  Without  any  fear  he  heard  the  approach- 
ing footsteps  of  the  pale  messenger.  For  the  Christian's 
faith  and  hope  had  robbed  death  of  its  terrors  and  illu- 
minated the  darkness  of  the  grave.  And  so  Dr.  Rush 
Senseny  was  ready  to  obey  the  call,  and  to  rise  on  that 
glad  Easter  morning  to  a  brighter  and  better  world. 

When  Rosalie  Murdock  became  Mrs.  Rush  Senseny, 
she  also  became  a  charming  addition  to  Chambersburg 
society.  Possessed  of  artistic  ability,  finely  educated, 
and  cultured  by  foreign  travel,  she  was  a  lady  of  most 
winning  personality.  Her  true  Southern  hospitality 
made  her  delightful  home  an  attractive  center.  She 
especially  endeared  herself  to  a  large  circle  of  relatives 
for  whom  she  kept  open  house.  None  knew  her  but 
to  love  her.  Her  long-afflicted  husband  enjoyed  the 
companionship  and  ministrations  of  a  most  devoted 
wife. 

On  April  5,  1911,  this  lovely  woman  was  suddenly 
called  away  to  join  the  blessed  company  assembled  in 
the  house  of  many  mansions  —  a  glorious  promotion  for 
her  —  but  a  sore  bereavement  to  the  dear  daughter 
who  has  thus  lost  not  only  a  loving  mother  —  but  a  dear 
sister  and  comrade  —  and  to  the  many  friends  as  well, 
who  feel  the  departure  of  Rose  Senseny  to  be  a  great 
personal  loss. 

(a)  Jeannette  Latham  Senseny,  their  only  child,  is  a 
vivacious  and  lovable  young  lady,  who  makes  troops  of 


m.   WILLIAM  105 

friends  by  her  good  nature  and  love  of  fun.  She  was  well 
educated  in  the  public  schools  of  Chambersburg,  and  at 
Wilson  College.  Exliibiting  a  marked  talent  for  music, 
she  was  given  a  fine  training  in  that  line,  studying  abroad 
for  a  time.  She  taught  vocal  and  instrumental  music 
at  the  famous  Indian  school  at  Carlisle  for  several  years; 
also  in  the  South,  and  is  now  one  of  the  faculty  of  music  in 
the  well-known  and  flourishing  Wilson  College,  Chambers- 
burg, Pa.  By  way  of  relaxation  from  her  taxing  duties  at 
the  college  she  assists  in  rendering  the  home  on  Market 
Street  an  attractive  one  to  visit,  and  a  hard  one  to  leave. 
"Jeanne,"  like  her  mother  before  her,  is  an  active  member 
of  the  Falling  Spring  Church. 

4.  Edgar  Nevin  Senseny  was  born  November  10, 
1844,  and  died  October  2,  1884.  Educated  at  the  Cham- 
bersburg Academy,  he  was  graduated  with  high  honor 
from  the  Jefferson  Medical  College,  Philadelphia,  in  1870. 
Returning  at  once  to  Chambersburg,  he  became  asso- 
ciated with  his  father,  and  shared  with  him  the  very  large 
practice  which  the  latter  had.  Of  fine  physique,  of  an 
amiable  disposition,  and  pleasing  manners;  of  agreeable 
conversational  powers,  having  a  kind  word  for  every  one, 
and  withal  being  specially  adapted  to  the  practice  of 
medicine.  Dr.  Edgar  soon  made  a  host  of  friends.  And 
so  for  a  few  years,  being  overworked  and  exposed  to  all 
kinds  of  weather  by  day  and  by  night,  the  seeds  of  disease 
were  sown,  that  cost  him  his  life.  He  was  the  last  of  a 
long  line  of  eminent  physicians,  and  passing  away  at  the 
early  age  of  forty,  his  death  was  a  sore  bereavement  to 
his  mother  and  relatives,  and  a  disappointment  and 
sorrow  to  the  public  in  general. 

5.  EL^TE  Elizabeth  Senseny  was  born  November  25, 
1846,  and  had  a  good  home-training,  and  education 
in  private  schools  and  in  Rosedale  Seminary.  She 
was  married  by  her  uncle,  Rev.  T.  K.  Davis,  on  Decem- 
ber 19,  1866,  to  William  M.  McKnight  of  Pittsburg. 


106  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

Mr.  McKnight,  born  February  19,  1841,  was  the  son  of 
Mr.  Joseph  McKnight,  one  of  the  leading  iron  and  steel 
men  of  Pittsburg.  His  mother  was  Mary  Jane  Acheson, 
a  sister  of  Mrs.  Wm.  Vanlear  Davis.  Wm.  M.  McKjiight 
was  in  the  war  for  the  Union,  and  was  a  member  of  the 
famous  "Roundhead"  regiment.  He  was  discharged 
from  the  army,  on  account  of  rheumatism  contracted  in 
the  service.  This  affected  his  brain,  resulting  in  nervous 
prostration  and  partial  paralysis.  Notwithstanding  this 
handicap,  Mr.  McKnight  was  an  active  and  public- 
spirited  man,  and  was  postmaster  of  Chambersburg  for 
some  years.     He  died  May  30,  1899. 

Mrs.  Kate  McKiiight  is  like  her  mother,  which  is  say- 
ing a  great  deal  in  her  praise.  Always  vivacious,  even 
when  sorrows  came,  she  has  been  like  sunshine  in  the 
circle  of  her  friends.  Whole-souled  and  generous,  she 
has  spent  her  life  in  ministering  in  the  home  and  com- 
munity. She  has  been  a  good  home-maker,  and  has 
reared  a  fine  family.  Her  home  is  on  the  banks  of  the 
Falling  Spring,  and  near  the  Falling  Spring  Church,  of 
which  she  and  her  daughters  are  members. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  McKnight  have  had  eight  children:  1. 
Joseph  B.,  2.  Alice  S.,  3.  Edgar  S.,  4.  William  A.,  5. 
Elizabeth  A.,  6.  Arthur  L.,  7.  Marcus  A.,  8.  Mary 
Jane  A. 

(a)  Joseph  B.  McKnight  was  born  in  Allegheny,  Pa., 
November  10,  1867.  He  had  good  advantages  of  educa- 
tion in  the  Chambersburg  Academy,  and  at  the  Military 
Academy  at  West  Chester,  Pa.  He  married  in  New  York 
City,  on  November  7,  1897,  Sarah  West  Downs,  who 
was  born  March  8,  1875.  They  have  one  child,  Marcus 
Acheson  McKnight,  who  was  born  September  27,  1899. 
Mr.  McKnight  is  a  machinist  in  the  Navy  Yard,  Wash- 
ington, D.  C.  Mrs.  McKnight  is  a  member  of  the 
Metropolitan  Presbyterian  Church,  in  Washington,  of 
which  the  Rev.  Paul  Hickok  is  pastor. 


m.    WILLIAM  107 

(6)  Alice  Senseny  McKnight  was  born  at  Monti- 
cello  Furnace,  Pa.,  received  a  good  education  in  Cham- 
bersburg,  and  developed  a  fine  artistic  taste  and  talent. 
She  is  a  lady  of  unusual  versatility  and  capability,  and  has 
for  some  years  been  conducting  a  very  popular  boarding- 
house  at  Bryn  Mawr,  Pa.  Miss  McKnight  is  a  member 
of  the  Presbji:erian  Church. 

(c)  Edgar  Senseny  McKnight  was  born  at  Monti- 
cello  Furnace,  Pa.,  December  6,  1871,  and  was  educated 
at  the  Chambersburg  Academy.  He  married,  October 
19,  1899,  IVIary  W.  Sipe,  who  was  born  at  McConnells- 
burg,  Pa.,  July  4,  1874,  and  is  a  member  of  the  United 
Brethren  Church.  Their  children  have  been:  1.  A  son, 
born  October  30,  1901,  and  died  November  4,  1901,  2. 
Alice  Gardner  McKnight,  born  October  28,  1902,  3. 
Arthur  Leighton  McKnight,  born  in  Washington, 
D.C,  December  27,  1903.  4.  George  Sipe  McKnight, 
born  in  Chambersburg,  March  5,  1905. 

(d)  William  A.  McKnight  was  born  at  Monticello 
Furnace,  Pa.,  April  21,  1874.  He  died  of  diphtheria  at 
the  home  of  his  grandparents,  in  Chambersburg,  May 
26,  1877,  to  the  great  grief  of  his  grandparents  and  other 
relatives,  who  had  become  strongly  attached  to  this  fine 
little  boy. 

(e)  Elizabeth  Acheson  McKnight  was  born  in 
Chambersburg,  and  is  at  home  with  her  mother  and 
younger  sister.  The  two  sisters  have  made  a  special 
study  of  domestic  science,  in  which  they  have  become 
exceedingly  proficient.  Elizabeth  has  also  spent  a  con- 
siderable time  in  the  Chambersburg  Hospital,  with  a  view 
to  fitting  herself  for  the  important  and  humane  work  of  a 
trained  nurse. 

(/)  Arthur  Leighton  McKnight,  one  of  the  gentlest 
and  most  lovable  of  boys,  was  bom  February  22,  1883, 
and  died  January  30,  1901,  at  the  German  Hospital,  in 
Philadelphia,  after  an  operation  for  appendicitis. 


108  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

(g)  Marcus  Acheson  McKnight  was  born  April  22, 
1886.  This  was  the  beloved  child  who  fell  into  the  Fal- 
ling Spring,  flowing  through  the  grounds  of  the  family 
residence,  and  was  drowned  October  8,  1888. 

(h)  Mary  Jane  Acheson  McKnight,  the  youngest  of 
the  family,  is  at  home  with  her  mother  and  sister.  Eliza- 
beth and  Mary  Jane  have  excited  the  admiration  of  all 
who  know  them  by  their  independence  and  self-reliance 
and  heroic  and  successful  exertions. 

6.  George  McClelland  Senseny,  the  sixth  child  of 
Dr.  and  Mrs.  A.  H.  Senseny,  was  born  August  8,  1849, 
and  died  October  12,  1850.  He  was  named  after  Dr. 
Senseny's  life-long  friend.  Dr.  Geo.  McClelland,  of  Phila- 
delphia. 

7.  Alice  Denny  Senseny  was  born  September  29, 
1851,  and  had  a  good  home-training,  and  was  educated 
in  private  schools.  She  was  married.  May  11,  1882,  to 
Mr.  John  D.  Grier,  a  fine  business  man  of  Chambersburg, 
and  an  earnest  Christian,  who  died  August  10,  1888. 
On  December  18,  1894,  Mrs.  Grier  was  married  to  Mr. 
A.  L.  Gardner,  of  Baltimore,  Md. 

Albert  Lafayette  Gardner  was  born  May  1,  1848, 
at  Springwater,  Livingston  County,  N.  Y.,  in  the  pic- 
turesque valley  of  the  Genesee.  His  parents  were 
Collins  and  Harriet  Watson  Gardner.  He  attended  the 
public  schools  and  academy  at  Dansville.  At  sixteen 
he  went  to  Syracuse,  and  was  graduated  from  a  Com- 
mercial School,  called  Ames's  Telegraphic  Institute. 
Then  began  his  railroad  career,  in  which  he  rose  rapidly, 
being  first  a  telegraph  operator;  then  assistant  station 
master;  then  successively  to  fine  positions  on  the  Michi- 
gan Central,  the  Vandalia  Line,  and  the  Cumberland 
Valley  Railroad  in  Pennsylvania,  where  he  became  chief 
train  despatcher.  In  1881  he  went  to  Baltimore  and  was 
train  despatcher  for  nine  years  on  the  Western  Maryland. 
He  was  then  elected  manager  of  the  Baltimore  Car  Ser- 


ra.    WILLIAM  109 

vice  Association,  which  position  he  has  held  for  twenty 
years.  He  has  been  in  active  railroad  service  since  1864, 
and  never  left  an  office  without  going  to  a  better  position. 
In  1875,  while  in  Chambersburg,  he  united  with  the 
Presbyterian  Church.  In  1878  he  married  Mary  Grier 
Reed,  a  daughter  of  Wm.  G.  and  Rebecca  L.  Reed. 
They  had  one  child,  Lindsay  Watson,  who  left  the  Cham- 
bersburg Academy  in  1898  to  assist  his  father  in  the  rail- 
road service  in  Baltimore,  which  position  he  still  occupies. 
The  first  Mrs.  Gardner  having  died  some  years  before, 
Mr.  Gardner  married  Mrs.  Grier  in  1894.  He  is  an  elder 
in  the  Northminster  Presbyterian  Church,  and  being  a 
man  of  sterling  qualities  of  head  and  heart,  his  influence, 
both  in  business  circles  and  in  the  church,  is  great  and 
good. 

Mrs.  Gardner  has  been  a  blessing  every  day  that  she 
has  lived.  Of  unusual  vivacity,  good  nature,  and  hos- 
pitality, she  has  endeared  herself  to  a  large  circle  of 
friends.  She  is  a  raconteur  par  excellence,  and  her  stories 
have  lightened  and  brightened  her  world,  which  is  one  of 
no  small  circumference.  She  is  a  charming  kinswoman, 
loyal  to  family  connection,  faithful  in  church  and  mis- 
sionary work,  and  is  a  Christian  who  is  surely  laying  up 
treasure  for  herself  in  the  life  to  come,  for  she  is  faithful, 
helpful,  and  uplifting  to  many  in  the  life  that  now  is. 

8.  Jeannette  Senseny,  the  youngest  of  the  family, 
was  born  November  4,  1854,  and  died  of  scarlet  fever 
March  2,  1861. 

3.  Sarah  Davis,  third  child  of  W.  S.  and  Joanna 
Davis,  was  born  April  3,  1818,  and  named  after  her  grand- 
mother Davis.     She  departed  this  life  April  23,  1820. 

4.  Elizabeth  Davis,  fourth  child  of  same  parents, 
was  born  December  17,  1820,  and  named  after  her  father's 
sister.     She  died  October  10,  1824. 


110  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

5.  Martha  Davis,  fifth  child  of  same  parents,  was  born 
September  23,  1823,  and  named  after  her  mother's  sister, 
Mrs.  Martha  Gilmore.     She  died  May  5,  1825. 

6.  Thomas  Kirby  Davis,  sixth  child  and  second  son 
of  W.  S.  and  J.  K.  Davis,  was  born  February  11,  1826. 
He  was  a  feeble  child,  and  took  a  full  course  of  the  ail- 
ments to  which  young  America  was  subject  in  those  days. 
The  family  physician  thought  he  would  not  live  to  reach 
manhood.  But  he  has  excellent  health  at  the  present 
time,  1911.  He  was  sent  to  school  from  a  very  early 
age,  and  so  had  the  misfortune  never  to  have  learned 
how  to  work.  He  believes  thoroughly  in  the  necessity 
and  advantage  of  combining  manual  labor  with  intellec- 
tual pursuits.  He  was  fitted  for  college,  by  his  brother 
Vanlear,  in  the  Chambersburg  Academy,  and,  as  a  result, 
at  the  age  of  nineteen  he  was  graduated  with  high  honor 
from  Yale  College  with  the  class  of  1845.  He  united 
with  the  College  Church  in  1843,  having  been  persuaded 
to  give  himself  to  Christ  by  his  classmate,  Henry  Day, 
afterward  an  eminent  Christian  lawyer  in  New  York. 
For  one  year  after  graduation  he  had  charge  of  the 
Academy  for  boys  in  Bedford,  Pa.  He  entered  Princeton 
Theological  Seminary  in  1846  and  left  in  1849.  He 
then  taught  in  the  Chambersburg  Academy,  and  at 
the  same  time  preached  at  Fayetteville,  until  he  was 
called  to  the  pastorate  of  the  Bedford  Church.  His 
ordination  occurred  at  Newville  in  1850,  and  he  was 
installed  at  Bedford  and  Schellsburg  that  same  year. 

On  August  14,  1851,  he  married  Mary  Hays  Proctor, 
of  Carlisle,  Pa.  Her  family  was  an  excellent  one.  The 
father  was  an  honored  elder  of  the  Second  Presbyterian 
Church.  The  oldest  son,  Rev.  John  O.  Proctor,  was  at 
that  time  a  pastor  in  Maryland.  The  health  of  Mrs. 
Davis  appearing  to  decline,  and  the  call  for  more  minis- 
ters on  the  Pacific  coast  being  very  urgent,  Mr.  Davis 


MRS.    THOMAS    K  I  R  B  Y    DAVIS 


III.    WILLIAM  111 

requested  and  received  a  release  from  his  pastoral  charge, 
and  went  with  his  wife  and  son  to  California,  via  the 
Isthmus  of  Panama.  The  railroad  across  the  isthmus 
was  quite  new,  and  it  required  an  entire  day  to  make 
the  forty  miles  from  Aspinwall  to  Panama.  He  supplied 
the  First  Church  of  San  Francisco  for  a  few  months,  and 
then  preached  for  a  year  in  Los  Angeles.  He  and  two 
other  ministers  —  a  Methodist  and  a  Baptist  —  who 
preached  at  El  Monte,  twelve  miles  from  the  "City  of 
the  Angels,"  were  the  only  Protestant  ministers  in  the 
southern  half  of  California.  The  First  Presbyterian 
Church  of  Los  Angeles,  worshiping  in  the  public  school- 
house,  numbered  twelve  members.  There  are  now 
thirty  Presbyterian  churches  in  that  city,  one  of  them 
having  more  than  two  thousand  members.  Driven  away 
by  a  serious  disturbance  on  the  part  of  the  natives, 
which  stopped  all  business,  and  closed  the  church  and 
schools,  he  went  to  Stockton,  where  he  preached  for  a 
year  or  more.  The  last  Sabbath  he  spent  in  California 
he  preached  in  Sacramento.  On  Monday  morning  a 
committee  waited  on  him,  and  urged  him  to  take  charge 
of  the  church  in  that  city.  But  the  health  of  Mrs.  Davis 
not  having  been  benefited  by  the  California  climate, 
he  deemed  it  his  duty  to  return  to  the  "States."  He 
settled  at  Middletown,  Pa.,  where  the  manse  which  was 
built  for  them  was  beautifully  located,  with  a  most  pic- 
turesque view  of  the  Susquehanna  and  its  islands.  But 
malarial  troubles  for  several  seasons,  and  a  threatened 
breakdown,  rendered  it  necessary  for  him  to  seek  a 
release  from  this  pastorate.  After  resting  for  a  year 
in  Pittsburg,  he  preached  in  Mansfield,  O.,  and  labored 
in  that  growing  young  city  between  three  and  four 
years.  He  then  asked  for  a  release,  in  order  to  engage 
in  working  for  the  establishment  of  the  Synod's  College 
at  Wooster.  WTiile  successfully  engaged  in  that  work  he 
was  tempted  to  accept  a  call  to  the  church  of  Hayes- 


112  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

ville,  and  to  the  chair  of  languages  in  Vermihon 
Institute,  with  a  view  to  the  education  of  his  growing 
family. 

While  thus  engaged,  he  organized  a  live  and  prosperous 
little  church  at  McKay,  which  he  supplied  while  he 
remained  in  Hayes  ville.  Being  again  called  into  the  ser- 
vice of  Wooster  University,  he  moved  to  Wooster,  where 
he  has  resided  to  the  present  time.  For  a  few  years  he 
traveled  over  the  state  as  fiscal  secretary  of  the  Univer- 
sity. In  1876  he  was  made  one  of  its  Trustees,  and 
secretary  of  the  Board,  and  also  of  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee. Since  1877  he  has  been  librarian  of  the  Uni- 
versity. In  connection  with  this  work  he  has  served  the 
churches  at  Mt.  Gilead,  Loudonville,  Perryville,  Lexing- 
ton, and  other  places. 

Foreseeing  the  great  "falling  away"  that  would  in- 
evitably follow  from  the  substitution  in  education  of 
human  reasoning,  in  place  of  faith  in  the  revelation 
contained  in  Holy  Scripture,  he  has  been  very  much 
devoted  to  helping  the  good  men  who  were  endeavoring 
to  build  up  in  Ohio  a  college  that  would  be  truly  and  out- 
and-out  Christian. 

He  has  been  a  frequent  contributor  to  periodical  litera- 
ture, and  in  1880  received  the  degree  of  D.D.  from  Penn- 
sylvania College  at  Gettysburg,  and  from  Parsons  College 
at  Fairfield,  Iowa. 

Mary  Proctor  Davis  had  a  good  education,  for  her 
day.  Had  she  enjoyed  such  advantages  as  young  women 
now  have,  at  our  higher  institutions,  she  would  have 
taken  first  rank  in  scholarship.  For  she  had  a  fine  mind. 
Her  piety  gave  her  character,  and  made  her  studious; 
and  her  natural  ability  would  have  enabled  her  to  make 
the  best  possible  use  of  her  attainments.  She  would 
have  made  a  fine  teacher  and  head  of  a  woman's  college. 
She  was  a  Mary  Lyon  sort  of  woman.  Always  feeble 
in  health,  and  lacking  in  physical  strength,  she  had  such 


1 


m.    WILLIAM  113 

an  indomitable  spirit,  and  so  much  energy,  that  she 
reared  a  large  family  with  eminent  success,  and  ordered 
her  household  with  the  wisdom  of  the  good  woman 
described  in  the  thirty-first  of  Proverbs.  I  have  no  hesi- 
tation in  saying  that  but  for  her  faith  and  prayers,  and 
her  good  practical  common  sense,  we  might  have  been 
swamped  in  the  storm  and  stress  of  life. 

March  28,  1908,  was  the  coronation  day  of  Mrs.  Davis  ;^ 
but  her  sudden  and  painless  translation  from  earth  to 
heaven  was  a  sad  loss  to  those  for  whom  she  had  lived 
and  sacrificed  so  much. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  had  the  following  children:  1. 
William  S.,  2.  INIary  O.,  3.  Miriam  M.,  4.  Janet  M.,  5. 
John  P.,  6.  Gertrude  S.,  7.  Robert  S.,  8.  Elizabeth  R., 
9.  Alice  S. 

1.  William  Stewart  Davis  (William  the  sixth),  born 
in  Bedford,  Pa.,  pursued  his  studies  in  the  public  schools 
of  Mansfield,  O.,  and  at  Vermilion  Institute.  He  then 
spent  two  or  three  years  in  the  oflBce  of  the  Ashland 
Times.  He  then  entered  Wooster  University,  unfor- 
tunately leaving  in  his  junior  year  to  enter  the  office  of 
the  Cleveland  Leader.  Wliile  thus  employed  \}e  married 
Cecilia  Elizabeth  Mercer,  of  Cleveland.  Being  called 
to  the  office  of  the  Herald  and  Presbyter,  in  Cincinnati, 
conducted  by  the  famous  family  of  the  Monforts,  Mr. 
Da\as  was  an  invaluable  assistant  to  them  for  twenty 
years.  For  some  years  he  has  been  the  expert  proof- 
reader in  the  Standard  Publishing  House,  in  Cincinnati. 

For  many  years  Mr.  Davis  has  been  an  elder  in  the 
Presbyterian  Church  at  Madisonville,  O.  His  untiring 
performance  of  duty  in  office,  church,  and  home  has 
developed  in  him  a  rare  degree  of  resignation,  a  strong 

^  Mrs.  Davis  was  greatly  interested  in  the  Missionary  Work  of  the  Church, 
and  in  the  Temperance  Reform  of  our  day.  Her  health  was  sadly  impaired 
by  the  active  part  she  took  in  the  Woman's  Crusade  of  1874,  and  by  her 
exposure  to  severe  weather  in  the  trying  experiences  of  that  memorable  winter. 


114  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

faith,  and  a  brave,  earnest  Christian  piety,  rarely  seen 
amidst  the  rush  of  urban  activities. 

Mrs.  Davis,  while  never  very  strong,  and  often  inter- 
rupted by  sickness,  has  been  a  good  wife  and  mother. 
She  has  raised  a  fine  family,  and  deserves  great  credit  for 
her  unselfish  devotion  to  her  loved  ones.  She  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Presbyterian  Church. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  have  had  five  children:  1.  Edith 
M.,  2.  Miriam  L.,  3.  William  S.,  4.  Helen  S.,  5. 
Rebecca  P. 

(a)  Edith  Mercer  Davis  was  born  in  Cleveland,  was 
graduated  from  one  of  the  high  schools  of  Cincinnati, 
and  from  Wooster  University,  with  the  class  of  1901. 
She  taught  at  Burkeville,  Va.,  and  at  Taos,  N.  M.  But, 
her  hearing  becoming  impaired,  she  was  compelled  to 
give  up  teaching,  and  to  abandon  her  long-cherished  pur- 
pose of  going  out  as  a  foreign  missionary.  She  is  her 
father's  able  assistant  in  the  Standard  Publishing 
House. 

Edith  is  an  earnest  Christian  worker,  as  a  Sabbath 
School  teacher,  missionary  speaker,  writer  for  the  religious 
press,  etc.  She  has  the  talent  and  piety  that  would  have 
made  her  a  noble  missionary  had  Providence  permitted 
her  to  go  to  the  foreign  field. 

(6)  Miriam  Lettie  Davis  lived  only  six  months. 

(c)  William  Stewart  Davis  (William  the  seventh) 
was  born  in  Cincinnati,  and  was  graduated  from  the  high 
school  of  Madison ville  in  1907.  He  then  took  a  business 
course  in  a  Commercial  College  in  Cincinnati,  and  was 
in  the  office  of  the  "Big  Four"  Railway  Company  long 
enough  to  prove  himself  an  energetic  and  reliable  young 
man.  He  left  this  to  continue  his  studies  at  the  Ohio 
State  University,  where  he  is  now  (1911)  making  a  spe- 
cialty of  forestry,  and  winning  praises  from  all  who  know 
him.  He  was  for  some  time  an  assistant  in  the  office  of 
the  president  of  the  University;    as  he  was,  when  at 


1 


m.    WILLIAM  115 

Winona  Lake  for  a  summer,  employed  as  an  assistant  by 
the  Superintendent. 

(d)  Helen  Sinclair  Davis  was  born  in  Cincinnati, 
and  was  almost  ready  to  be  graduated  from  the  Madison- 
ville  Pligh  School  when  typhoid  fever  carried  ofif  this 
lovely  and  well-beloved  girl,  when  she  had  just  passed  her 
seventeenth  birthday,  Helen  had  early  given  her  heart 
to  the  Saviour,  and  nothing  but  the  assurance  that  she 
had  entered  upon  the  grand  inheritance  of  the  children 
of  God,  could  have  reconciled  her  parents  and  numerous 
friends  to  losing  her  companionship. 

(e)  Rebecca  Proctor  Davis  was  born  in  Madison- 
ville,  and  is  now  in  the  high  school,  where  she  is  winning 
applause  for  her  fidelity  and  high  standing  as  a  pupil. 
She  is  an  earnest  young  Christian,  and  possesses  those 
traits  of  character  which  should  distinguish  the  disciples 
of  the  Great  Teacher.  Rebecca  and  her  brother  were 
both  very  near  unto  death  at  the  time  of  Helen's  depart- 
ure. Their  friends  all  trust  that  they  were  preserved  for 
useful  and  honorable  careers. 

2.  Mary  Officer  Davis  was  born  in  Bedford,  and 
named  after  her  maternal  grandmother.  She  was  a 
remarkably  beautiful  and  lovable  child,  and  her  sudden 
death,  from  croup,  at  Carlisle,  Pa.,  when  her  parents  were 
en  route  to  California,  saddened  their  journey.  She  had 
been  with  them  seventeen  months. 

3.  Miriam  Maud  Davis  was  born  in  Los  Angeles, 
Cal.  She  pursued  her  studies  at  Vermilion  Institute  and 
at  Wooster  University.  From  the  latter  she  was  gradu- 
ated with  the  class  of  1879.  She  became  assistant 
librarian  of  the  University  for  some  years,  and  since  1888 
has  had  charge  of  the  Reference  Department  in  the  Public 
Library  of  Minneapolis,  Minn.  Miss  Davis,  in  addition 
to  winning  honors  in  her  class  at  college,  for  excellence 
in  scholarship,  is  considered  one  of  the  finest  reference 
librarians  in  the  West.     She  is  a  member  of  the  W.  C.  T.U. 


116  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

and  of  the  A.  L.  A.,  an  omnivorous  reader,  an  excellent 
linguist,  and  is  thoroughly  equipped  for  her  profession. 

In  the  home  she  was  always  her  mother's  devoted 
helper.  She  is  an  ideal  daughter,  sister,  and  aunt,  if 
diligence,  perseverance,  unselfishness,  and  devotion  to 
those  dear  to  her  constitute  ideality. 

4.  Janet  Morris  Davis  was  born  in  Mechanicsburg, 
Pa.  She  attended  the  public  schools  and  University  of 
Wooster.  While  pursuing  the  study  of  Greek  in  her 
Sophomore  year,  Cupid  entered  the  class-room,  and  the 
result  was  the  wedding  on  September  2,  1878,  of  James 
Wallace,  the  Adjunct-professor  of  Greek,  and  Janet 
Davis. 

In  September,  1888,  they  moved  to  St.  Paul,  Minn., 
Professor  Wallace  having  been  called  to  occupy  the  chair 
of  Greek  in  Macalester  College.  He  was  ere  long  called 
to  the  presidency  of  the  college,  which  was  overwhelm- 
ingly in  debt.  Then  began  one  of  the  most  heroic 
struggles  that  ever  a  college  president  had,  to  save  the 
life  of  a  most  deserving  and  useful  institution.  The 
times  being  very  unfavorable,  it  required  many  years  to 
do  it,  and  it  required  sacrifices  on  the  part  of  the  president, 
his  family,  and  the  faculty,  that  but  few  would  have  been 
willing  to  make.  But  the  plucky  descendant  of  a  noble 
Scotch  ancestry  came  out  "on  top."  The  institution 
was  entirely  cleared  of  debt,  and  Macalester  College  lives 
to  be  an  honor  and  a  blessing  to  the  great  Northwest. 
When  this  object  had  been  attained  Dr.  Wallace  resigned 
the  presidency,  and  was  given  leave  of  absence,  for  three 
consecutive  years,  that  he  might  engage  in  the  congenial 
and  delightful  work  of  teaching  in  the  Bible  and  Mission- 
ary Training  School  under  the  charge  of  Dr.  W.  W. 
White  in  New  York  City.  While  Dr.  Wallace  was  asked 
by  Dr.  White  to  remain,  he  returned  to  Macalester 
College,  being  induced  so  to  do  by  the  establishment  of 
a  Bible  School  of  which  he  has  charge.     The  degrees  of 


DR.    JAMES    WALLACE 


REV.    JOHN     M,    DAVIES 


III.    WILLIAM  117 

Ph.D.  and  LL.D.  were  conferred  upon  Professor  Wallace 
by  his  alma  mater,  Wooster  University. 

Mrs.  Wallace,  had  she  continued  her  college  course, 
would  undoubtedly  have  won  many  honors,  for  she  was 
highly  gifted  intellectually,  and  was  possessed  of  musical 
and  poetical  talent.  But  Providence  ordered  otherwise, 
and  she  has  had  a  life  of  struggle  and  self-denial  under  the 
circumstances  above  alluded  to.  But  this  has  developed 
a  spirituality  and  strength  of  character  that  a  more  easy 
and  comfortable  life  would  hardly  have  produced.  She 
has  reared  a  remarkably  fine  family  of  sons  and  daughters, 
and  that  is  something  of  which  Mary  Means,  the  mother  of 
us  all,  would  highly  approve;  and  who  can  doubt  that  she 
wijl  warmly  welcome  to  her  heavenly  "place,"  when  the 
time  shall  come,  her  bright  and  saintly  descendant,  Janet 
Davis  Wallace. 

The  children  of  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Wallace  are  as  follows: 
1.  Miriam  G.,  2.  Helen  M.,  3.  Benjamin  B.,  4.  Robert 
S.,  5.  William  R.  D.,  6.  Janet  M.,  7.  Miriam  W. 

(a)  Miriam  Gabrielle  Wallace,  always  known  and 
loved  as  "Gay,"  was  born  in  Wooster.  She  was  a  very 
interesting  and  dear  child  who  was  taken  to  her  heavenly 
home  March  9,  1887.  Even  at  seven  years  of  age  her 
vivacity  justified  her  name. 

(6)  Helen  Margaret  W^allace  was  also  born  in 
Wooster.  A  diligent  student  and  well  fitted  for  college, 
she  was  graduated  from  Macalester,  with  second  honor, 
with  the  class  of  1902.  She  was  librarian  for  a  time  at 
her  alma  mater,  and  later  attended  the  Bible  Schools 
in  Wooster  and  New  York.  She  was  married  by  her 
grandfather,  T.  K.  Davis,  assisted  by  her  uncle  the  Rev. 
John  P.  Davis,  August  30,  1906,  to  the  Rev.  John  M. 
Da  vies.  He  was  of  good  Welsh  antecedents,  a  graduate 
of  Macalester  College,  and  of  Princeton  Theological 
Seminary,  and  pastor  for  several  years  of  the  Presby- 
terian Church  of  Grand  Rapids,  Minn.,  and  is  now  pastor 


118  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

of  the  Seventh  Presbyterian  Church  of  Chicago,  111. 
Rarely  is  a  young  pastor  favored  with  a  helper  more 
devoted  to  her  wifely  and  domestic  duties,  or  one  more 
beloved  by  his  people  for  her  incessant  efforts  to  promote 
Christian  activities  among  them. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davies  have  two  daughters,  Janet 
Rachel,  named  for  her  two  grandmothers,  born  at 
Grand  Rapids,  Minn.,  June  25,  1909,  and  Helen 
Dorothy,  born  August  13,  1911,  in  Chicago,  111. 

(c)  Benjamin  Bruce  Wallace,  born  in  Wooster,  O., 
won  distinction,  even  as  a  "Prep,"  in  Wooster  Univer- 
sity. He  was  graduated  from  Macalester  College,  with 
first  honors,  in  the  class  of  1902.  He  was  then  an  in- 
structor in  his  alma  mater  for  two  years.  He  won  the 
Rhodes  Scholarship  for  Minnesota,  and  spent  three  years 
in  faithful  study  at  Oxford  University,  England,  spending 
his  vacations  in  study  and  travel  on  the  Continent.  On 
his  return  to  America  he  was  selected  to  take  charge  of 
the  classes  of  ex-President  Scovel,  who  had  been  granted 
leave  of  absence  for  a  year  from  Wooster  University. 
Mr.  Wallace  then  spent  two  years  in  post-graduate  study, 
having  won  a  fellowship  in  the  University  of  Wisconsin, 
where  he  expects  to  win  the  degree  of  Ph.D.  He  was 
then  called  to  be  an  Instructor  in  History  in  Princeton 
University,  which  position  he  still  holds  in  1911. 

(d)  Robert  Sinclair  Wallace,  commonly  known  as 
"Robin,"  was  born  in  Wooster,  Ohio.  He  was  graduated 
from  Macalester  College  in  1908,  and  then  entered  the 
Forestry  Department  of  Yale  University.  He  spent  his 
vacations  in  the  forests  of  Pennsylvania  and  Louisiana, 
taking  practical  lessons  in  forestry.  Since  his  graduation 
in  1910  he  has  been  stationed  by  the  United  States  Gov- 
ernment at  Albuquerque,  N.  M.,  and  at  Womba,  Ark. 
Robin  is  a  fine  young  man,  with  sterling  qualities  of  head 
and  heart,  excellent  musical  abilities,  and  is  a  general 
favorite.     We  expect  much  from  Robin,  for  he  is  emi- 


« 


REV.    JOHN    P.    DAVIS 


m.    WILLIAM  119 

nently  practical,  and  will  be  a  useful  man,  making  "this 
wilderness  here  below"  brighter  and  better  because  of 
his  existence. 

(e)  William  Roy  De  Witt  Wallace  was  born  in  St. 
Paul,  Minn.  He  was  a  student  at  Northfield,  Mass.,  and 
at  Macalester  College.  He  was  for  a  year  assistant 
cashier  in  his  uncle's  bank  at  Monte  Vista,  Colo.  In  the 
fall  of  1910,  in  order  to  be  with  a  former  "chum"  at 
Macalester  College,  he  entered  the  University  of  Cali- 
fornia, at  Berkeley.  De  Witt  has  fine  gifts,  excellent 
principles,  is  a  good  writer,  and  excels  in  athletics. 

(/)  Janet  Macalester  Wallace  was  born  in  St. 
Paul,  and  while  on  a  visit  at  her  grandparent's,  in  Wooster, 
she  became  ill  and  died,  much  to  the  grief  of  the  family, 
for  she  was  a  remarkably  sweet  and  winsome  child.  Her 
body  rests  by  the  side  of  her  sister  Gay  in  Wooster 's 
beautiful  cemetery. 

(g)  Miriam  Winifred  Wallace  was  "nigh  unto 
death"  at  the  same  time  with  her  twin  sister  Janet.  She 
was  mercifully  spared  to  be  the  joy  of  her  parents  and 
friends.  She  is  now  "sweet  sixteen."  She  has  studied 
in  Northfield,  Mass.,  and  is  now  attending  Macalester 
College.  She  is  fond  of  athletic  sports,  being  proficient 
in  basket  ball  and  in  swimming,  reveling  in  the  water  each 
summer  while  the  family  resides  on  Lake  Wappagasset. 
She  has  been  devoted  to  the  piano  since  childhood,  and 
her  brothers  are  devoted  to  her  for  she  is  a  rarely  attract- 
ive and  amiable  girl. 

Dr.  and  Mrs.  Wallace  and  all  their  children  are  mem- 
bers of  the  Presbyterian  Church.  Dr.  Wallace  has  been 
licensed  to  preach. 

5.  John  Proctor  Davis  was  born  in  Middletown,  Pa. 
He  was  graduated  from  the  Wooster  High  School,  and 
from  the  University  with  the  class  of  1883,  having  taken 
the  Latin  prize  during  his  course.  He  was  for  several 
years  a  professor  in  Biddle  University,  at  Charlotte,  N.  C. 


120  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

He  then  entered  the  Western  Theological  Seminary  at 
Allegheny,  and  was  graduated  from  the  same  in  1889. 
On  April  24,  1890,  he  married  Blanche  Oudry,  of  Alle- 
gheny. He  was  the  very  acceptable  and  useful  pastor 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Keene,  O.,  from  1889  to 
1900.  A  part  of  that  time  he  was  pastor  of  the  churches 
of  Warsaw  and  Jefferson,  in  connection  with  Keene;  and 
the  rest  of  the  time,  of  Keene  and  Clark  churches.  Since 
1900  he  has  had  charge  of  churches  at  Lorain,  O.,  James- 
town, N.  D.,  Austin,  Minn.,  and  at  present  is  supplying 
the  church  at  Rawlins,  Wyo. 

Mr.  Davis  possesses  the  gifts  and  qualities  which  con- 
tribute to  the  acceptability  and  usefulness  of  a  minister. 
He  is  a  good  presbyter  also,  and  has  been  honored  by  his 
co-presbyters  with  important  official  duties.  As  a 
preacher,  he  is  able  and  earnest;  as  a  pastor,  attentive, 
sympathetic,  and  loved.  He  is  versatile  and  practical, 
sings  well,  and  writes  verses.  He  is  considered  a  hand- 
some man,  and  is  as  good  as  he  is  handsome. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  had  two  children  —  both  born  at 
Keene,  O. 

Philip  Proctor  Davis  was  born  February  18,  1891. 
He  is  a  good-looking  young  man,  of  excellent  disposition 
and  habits.  He  has  had  fine  educational  advantages, 
and  is  now  a  student  in  the  University  of  Pittsburg.  He 
is  a  member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  and  is  forming 
a  character  which  will  insure  him  a  career  of  honorable 
and  useful  activity  among  men. 

Arthur  Oudry  Davis  was  born  April  28,  1896.  He 
is  as  yet  enjoying  the  advantages  of  good  public  schools. 
He  is  a  bright  boy,  of  sweet  disposition,  studious,  a  church- 
member,  and  gives  promise  of  becoming  a  noble  man. 

6.  Gertrude  Sinclair  Davis,  born  in  Middletown, 
Pa.,  was  a  beautiful  and  very  dear  child.  In  her  second 
summer,  at  a  time  when  every  child  in  the  family  had 
first  the  measles,  and,  immediately  after,  the  whooping- 


m.    WILLIAM  121 

cough,  and  the  house  was  like  a  hospital,  little  Gertie  was 
the  one  to  succumb  to  the  complication  of  diseases. 

7.  Robert  Stewart  Davis,  born  in  Mechanicsburg, 
Pa.,  and  named  after  his  uncle  in  Pittsburg,  a  fine,  healthy 
child,  lived  between  ten  and  eleven  months,  when  sud- 
denly, by  membranous  croup,^  the  dear  Lord  took  him  to 
a  better  home  on  high. 

8.  Elizabeth  Rebecca  Davis  was  born  in  Mansfield, 
O.  She  received  her  education  in  the  public  schools  and 
University  of  Wooster.  In  the  latter  she  received  a  prize 
in  history.  She  pursued  courses  in  the  fine  arts  at  the 
Cincinnati  School  of  Design,  the  Philadelphia  School  of 
Design  for  Women,  Cooper  Institute,  N.  Y.,  where  she 
was  graduated  with  high  standing,  and  the  National 
Academy  of  Design.  She  was  also  graduated  at  Teachers ' 
College,  Columbia  University,  N.  Y.  She  received  in- 
struction in  manual  training  at  the  University  of  IVIinne- 
sota,  and  in  the  arts  and  crafts,  in  Columbus,  O.  IVIiss 
Davis  taught  with  great  acceptance  for  several  years, 
privately  in  Wooster  and  in  New  York,  and  in  schools  in 
Texas,  IVIissouri,  Wisconsin,  and  Minnesota  —  her 
branches  not  always  limited  to  the  fine  arts.  She  be- 
longed to  the  Art  Students'  Club  and  to  the  Glee  Club 
of  Teachers'  College,  and  was  a  charter  member  of  the 
Wooster  Art  Club,  and  of  the  Great  Events  Club. 
Being  fond  of  literary  work,  she  is  considered  a  good 
reader  and  writer,  excelling  in  letter- writing. 

Her  chief  characteristics  are  economy,  thrift,  wit,  and 
love  of  nature,  art,  and  architecture.  Being  versatile,  she 
can  adapt  herself  to  circumstances,  even  when  they  call 
her  from  the  studio  of  an  art  teacher  to  remain  at  home 
on  account  of  her  mother's  state  of  health.  Since  the 
death  of  the  latter,  in  1908,  she  has  been  the  capable  and 
efficient  home-maker  for  her  father. 

9.  Alice  Senseny  Davis  was  born  at  Hayesville,  O. 
She  attended  the  public  schools  and  University  of  Woos- 


122  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

ter,  took  a  course  in  the  Cleveland  Summer  Library 
School,  and  was  assistant  librarian  of  the  University 
for  many  years.  Here  she  gained  such  a  knowledge 
of  the  profession,  and  became  so  proficient,  that  she 
was  called  to  be  cataloguer  in  the  Ohio  State  Library,  at 
Columbus,  in  1903,  her  chief  being  the  Hon.  C.  B.  Gal- 
breath,  one  of  the  best  librarians  in  the  country.  With 
such  literary  advantages,  a  deep  interest  in  church  and 
missionary  work,  and  the  gift  of  a  ready  writer  and  public 
speaker,  she  has  often  appeared  before  audiences  in 
Columbus  and  elsewhere.  She  was  a  member  of  the 
Thursday  Club  of  Wooster  for  many  years,  and  is  a 
member  of  the  Traveler's  Club  of  Columbus,  O. 

Her  distinguishing  traits  of  character  are  devotion  to 
duty,  and  to  her  friends,  kindness  of  heart,  unselfish 
generosity,  and  the  ability  to  make  herself  so  agreeable 
wherever  she  goes,  that  she  reminds  one  of  Mrs.  Brown- 
ing's "Kate." 

7.  Joanna  Kirby  Davis  was  born  August  3,  1828. 
She  died  of  scarlet  fever,  while  yet  a  child.  She  and  her 
brother  Thomas  were  very  ill  of  the  dread  disease  at  the 
same  time.     One  was  taken  and  the  other  left. 

8.  Robert  Stewart  Davis  was  born  in  Chambers- 
burg  April  8,  1831.  He  received  his  education  in  the 
Chambersburg  Academy.  In  1849  he  traveled  by  stage 
over  the  old  "turn  pike"  to  Pittsburg,  where  he  entered 
the  bookstore  of  Johnston  and  Stockton.  He  united  by 
letter  with  the  First  Presbyterian  Church,  of  which  Dr. 
Francis  Herron  was  the  pastor.  On  May  10,  1855,  he 
was  married,  by  his  brother,  T.  K.  Davis,  to  Clarissa 
Faires  Fulton,  of  a  good  old  Scotch-Irish  Presbyterian 
family.  For  more  than  fifty  years  he  has  been  well 
known  and  highly  esteemed  in  Pittsburg  as  a  leading 
bookseller;   and  as   an   elder   of   the  First  Presbyterian 


ROBERT    S.    DAVIS 


1i 


m.   WILLIAM  123 

Church  from  1862  to  the  present  time.  He  was  treas- 
urer and  secretary  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  his  church 
for  forty-nine  years.  He  was  at  one  time  president  of 
the  Pittsburg  Bible  Society,  and  has  been  for  thirty-five 
years  a  member  of  the  Freedmen's  Board  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church.  Being  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees  of  Biddle  University,  it  has  been  his  custom  for 
many  years  to  make  an  annual  visit  to  that  college,  and 
other  schools  located  near  it. 

In  1867  during  the  first  Paris  Exposition  he  visited 
Paris,  where  he  saw  the  Emperor  and  the  beautiful 
Empress  Eugenie,  King  William  the  First,  of  Prussia,  and 
the  Sultan  of  Turkey. 

He  is  a  great  friend  of  Home  and  Foreign  Missions, 
having  visited  some  of  the  stations  in  China  and  Japan 
in  1888,  making  the  long  trip  home  in  company  with  his 
daughter,  Annie  K.  Davis,  who  was  returning  on  fur- 
lough. In  1896  he  attended  as  a  delegate  the  Pan-Pres- 
byterian Council,  held  in  Glasgow,  Scotland.  Before  his 
return  he  spent  a  week  in  picturesque  Norway,  and  vis- 
ited London,  where  he  saw  Queen  Victoria  and  the  bridal 
party  of  Princess  Maud  at  Buckingham  Palace. 

Mr.  Davis  makes  and  keeps  a  host  of  friends.  He  is  a 
welcome  guest  wherever  he  goes,  and  he  loves  to  travel. 
He  is  an  upright  citizen,  a  loyal  friend,  a  good  host,  and 
altogether  a  fine  character. 

Mrs.  Clara  Fulton  Davis  was  a  most  excellent 
woman,  of  superior  character,  one  who  commanded  the 
respect  and  love  of  all  around  her,  by  the  quiet,  gentle, 
winning  way  in  which  she  performed  the  duties  of  wife, 
mother,  home-maker,  and  Christian  worker.  As  she 
advanced  in  years  she  grew  in  grace;  and  when,  on  a 
lovely  day  in  June,  1907,  she  quietly,  sweetly  "slipped 
awa'"  into  scenes  of  eternal  beauty  and  joy,  there  was 
a  void  in  her  family  and  large  circle  of  friends  which  has 
been  keenly  felt. 


124  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  had  six  children,  all  born  in  Pitts- 
burg: 1.  Joanna  K.,  2.  Alice  D.,  3.  Henry  F.,  4.  William 
S.,  5.  Robert  S.,  6.  Mary  H. 

1.  Joanna,  or  "Annie"  Kirby  Davis  was  born  June 
24,  1856.  She  was  educated  at  the  Pennsylvania  College 
for  Women,  and  early  in  life  became  a  member  of  the 
church.  Possessing  a  spirit  of  Christian  devotion,  inher- 
ited from  both  parents,  she  offered  herself  as  a  missionary 
teacher  to  the  Presbyterian  Board,  was  accepted  and 
sent  to  Japan  in  1880.  There  for  eighteen  years  she 
taught  in  the  Bancho  School  for  Girls,  in  Tokio,  of  which 
Mrs.  Maria  T.  True  was  principal.  She  was  greatly 
loved  and  appreciated  by  teachers  and  pupils  for  her 
gentle  spirit  and  eflScient  work.  During  all  those  years 
she  was  at  home  to  rest  but  once;  and  then  she  was  not 
idle.  Her  services  were  in  great  demand  among  the 
missionary  societies  of  the  church  for  making  addresses 
and  infusing  the  missionary  spirit  into  the  women  at 
home.  Miss  Davis  reluctantly  retired  from  the  work  in 
1897,  the  declining  health  of  her  mother  requiring  her 
presence  in  the  home.  Here  her  zeal  is  none  the  less 
active  though  on  the  Home  instead  of  the  Foreign  field. 
In  serving  on  the  Board  of  the  Christian  Home  for  Women, 
in  Pittsburg,  in  her  church  work,  and  untiring  devotion 
to  the  welfare  of  the  family  and  many  visiting  friends, 
she  proves  her  self-sacrificing  worth  as  daughter,  sister, 
kinswoman,  and  friend. 

2.  Alice  Denny  Davis  was  born  April  11,  1858,  and 
was  named  after  her  father's  Sabbath  School  teacher  in 
Chambersburg.  She  was  educated  in  the  public  schools 
of  Pittsburg,  and  at  the  University  of  Wooster.  With 
her  aunt.  Miss  Elizabeth  Fulton,  she  is  conducting  a  very 
popular  boarding-house  at  Brushton,  in  the  east  end  of 
Pittsburg. 

In  Miss  Davis  are  combined  many  sterling  qualities. 
She  possesses  so  sweet  and  amiable  a  disposition  as  to 


m.    WILLL\M  125 

endear  herself  to  all  who  know  her.  She  has  remarkable 
versatility,  being  decidedly  practical  and  very  capable, 
doing  well  whatever  her  hands  find  to  do.  She  is  mis- 
tress of  the  domestic  arts,  and  proficient  in  embroidery, 
china  painting,  and  music. 

3.  Henry  Fulton  Davis,  better  known  among  his 
friends  as  "Harry,"  was  born  December  13,  1859.  After 
a  course  in  the  public  schools,  he  entered  the  University 
of  Pittsburg  in  1875.  He  left  it  at  the  end  of  his  junior 
year,  entered  his  father's  bookstore,  and  has  been  in  the 
book  business  ever  since,  having  complete  charge  since 
his  father's  partial  retirement. 

Mr.  Davis  must  have  a  good  deal  of  the  military  spirit, 
inherited  from  his  revolutionary^  ancestors,  on  both  sides 
of  the  house.  In  1880  he  enlisted  in  Company  G,  18th 
Regiment,  National  Guards,  Pennsylvania.  During  the 
six  years  following  he  served  as  private,  corporal,  sergeant, 
second  lieutenant,  first  lieutenant,  and  captain.  He  was 
regimental  adjutant,  under  Colonel  Norman. 

During  the  riot  at  Mt.  Pleasant,  in  1891,  he  served  with 
the  regiment.  In  the  great  strike  and  riots  at  Homestead, 
in  1892,  he  served  for  six  weeks.  In  1896  he  was  placed 
on  the  retired  list,  at  his  own  request,  having  served  with 
the  18th  Regiment  for  more  than  fifteen  years. 

At  the  opening  of  the  Spanish  War  he  wrote  to  the 
governor  of  the  state,  asking  that  he  might  be  transferred 
from  the  retired  to  the  active  list;  and  he  spent  some 
weeks  at  Chickamauga  and  Tampa,  having  a  pass  from 
the  Secretary  of  War,  which  was  good  on  all  transports, 
etc.  The  18th  Regiment  was  to  be  increased  from  an 
8-company  to  a  12-company  regiment,  and,  owing  to  the 
friendship  of  Colonel  Smith,  Mr.  Davis  was  to  recruit 
and  command  one  of  the  companies.  Blit  before  the 
order  was  issued,  peace  was  declared  and  the  regiments 
were  sent  home.  It  was  a  great  disappointment  to  Mr. 
Davis  not  to  get  into  active  service  during  the  Spanish 


126  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

War;  but  he  has  the  satisfaction  of  knowing  that  if  the 
war  had  lasted  a  Httle  longer,  he  would  have  been  called 
into  service. 

In  1903,  during  the  riots  in  the  anthracite  coal  district, 
he  was  again  transferred  to  the  active  list,  and  served 
with  the  18th  Regiment,  as  quartermaster,  during  that 
term  of  duty. 

In  1904  he  was  elected  secretary  of  the  American 
Booksellers'  Association,  and  served  in  that  capacity  for 
four  years. 

In  1906  he  was  elected  commander  of  the  Veteran 
Corps  of  the  18th  Regiment,  and  served  as  such  for  two 
years. 

Mr.  Davis  has  always  been  deeply  interested  in  polit- 
ical reform  as  well  as  in  military  affairs.  He  handles  the 
pen  of  a  ready  writer,  and  has,  from  time  to  time,  pub- 
lished articles  calculated  to  promote  the  public  welfare. 

He  married  Emma  Hall,  of  an  excellent  family  in  Baden, 
Pa.,  April  12,  1888.  Her  father's  family  came  to  the 
neighborhood  of  Pittsburg  from  Baltimore,  Md.  Her 
mother  was  a  Miss  Ewing,  of  Washington,  Pa.  Mrs. 
Emma  Davis  is  an  admirable  wife  and  mother,  and  being 
a  Methodist,  and  her  husband  a  Presbyterian,  the  com- 
bination is  a  good  one. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  have  three  children:  1.  Clara 
Fulton  Davis,  named  for  her  grandmother,  is  a  bright 
and  attractive  girl,  with  a  remarkably  sweet  disposition 
and  winning  ways.  2.  Margaret  Hall  Davis  resembles 
her  mother's  side  of  the  house,  and  is  full  of  life  and  fun, 
inherited  from  her  vivacious  mother.  She  is  a  busy 
schoolgirl.  3.  Henry  Fulton  Davis,  Jr.,  is  a  fine  boy, 
who,  we  hope,  will  grow  to  be  a  leading  citizen  of  Pitts- 
burg, if  he  combines  the  steadiness  of  his  grandfather 
Davis  with  the  versatile  talents  of  his  father. 

4.  Robert  Stewart  Davis,  Jr.,  was  born  January  8, 
1864.     He  was  educated  in  the  public  schools  of  Pitts- 


ni.    WILLIAM  127 

burg  and  Allegheny.  When  fifteen  years  of  age  he 
accepted  employment  as  messenger  boy  in  the  general 
freight  office  of  the  Pittsburg  and  Lake  Erie  Railroad  in 
Pittsburg.  He  was  advanced  through  various  depart- 
ments to  the  position  of  voucher  clerk.  In  1884  he 
became  contracting  clerk  for  the  same  company,  with 
headquarters  in  Pittsburg.  He  was  thus  engaged  until, 
in  1886,  he  was  offered  the  same  position  with  the  St. 
Louis,  Arkansas,  and  Texas  Railroad.  In  1888  this  com- 
pany sent  him  to  Cincinnati  as  their  general  agent.  In 
1891  they  sent  him  to  St.  Louis  as  assistant  general  freight 
agent.  In  1893  he  was  appointed  general  freight  agent, 
and  served  until  April  1,  1901.  He  then  severed  his 
connection  with  this  company,  and  with  his  family  went 
to  Pittsburg  and  engaged  in  the  book  business  with  his 
father  and  brother.  But  in  the  latter  part  of  1902  he 
accepted  service  with  the  St.  Louis  and  San  Francisco 
Railroad.  In  June,  1903,  Mr.  R.  A.  Long,  president  of 
the  Long-Bell  Lumber  Company  and  Associated  Interests 
at  Kansas  City,  Mo.,  proffered  Mr.  Davis  the  position  of 
traffic  manager  of  the  company.  This  is  about  the  largest 
lumber  company  in  the  country.  They  owned  about  one 
hundred  and  sixty  miles  of  railroad.  In  1905  the  rail- 
road interests  were  divorced  from  the  lumber  interests, 
and  Mr.  Davis  was  appointed  traffic  manager  of  the  rail- 
road above  mentioned,  which  position  he  still  occupies. 

On  April  8,  1891,  he  married  Eleanor  Curd  Elliott, 
of  Lexington,  Ky.  She  was  the  daughter  of  James  Mad- 
ison and  Julia  Le  Grand  Elliott.  Mr.  Elliott  was  the 
largest  dry -goods  merchant  in  Lexington.  His  father 
came  to  this  country  from  Scotland,  and  settled  in  Vir- 
ginia. Mrs.  Davis's  grandmother  was  Mary  Morton, 
who  was  a  daughter  of  William  Morton,  at  one  time  the 
largest  land-owner  in  Kentucky. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  have  three  children:  1.  Eleanor 
Elliott  Davis,  born  January  8, 1892;  2.  Robert  Stewart 


128  THE   DAVIS    FAMILY 

Davis,  Jr.,  born  February  12,  1896,  3.  Julia  Le  Grand 
Davis,  born  August  9,  1897.  They  were  all  born  in  the 
city  of  St.  Louis. 

Mr.  Davis  still  holds  his  membership  in  the  First 
Presbyterian  Church  of  Pittsburg,  but  he  attends  the 
Independence  Boulevard  Christian  Church  and  Bible 
School  in  Kansas  City.  Mrs.  Davis  and  her  daughter 
Eleanor  are  members  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church. 

5.  Mary  Hartley  Davis,  the  youngest  of  the  family, 
was  named  after  her  maternal  grandmother.  She  was 
educated  in  the  public  schools  of  Pittsburg  and  Allegheny, 
and  was  graduated  from  the  College  for  Women  at  Paines- 
ville,  O.  She  is  a  member  of  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church  of  Pittsburg,  and  is  helping  to  make  the  hospi- 
table home  on  Atlantic  Avenue  pleasant  for  her  father, 
and  for  the  many  who  visit  it. 

9.  Mary  Stewart  Davis,  the  youngest  of  the  family 
of  W.  S.  and  Joanna  Davis,  was  born  April  19,  1834. 
While  a  healthy  and  promising  babe,  she  was  "carried 
off"  in  about  a  year,  April  15,  1835,  by  one  of  the  many 
children's  diseases,  which,  in  those  days,  were  so  destruc- 
tive of  young  life. 

B.  Robert  Davis,  second  child  of  William  and  Sarah 
Davis,  was  born  on  the  farm  in  Franklin  County,  July  1, 
1790.  He  spent  some  years  in  managing  a  part  of  the  old 
home  farm,  which  he  had  purchased.  Disposing  of  this, 
he  went  into  mercantile  business  in  Shippensburg.  He 
married  Hannah  Jameson  May  3,  1821,  the  Rev.  John 
Moody,  pastor  at  Middle  Spring,  officiating.  In  the 
spring  of  1837  he  moved  with  his  family,  his  brother 
James,  and  their  sisters,  Elizabeth  and  Mary,  to  Ohio. 
They  engaged  in  mercantile  business  for  a  year  in  Steuben- 
ville,  and  then  moved  on  —  Robert  to  Brookfield,  Stark 


ROBERT    DAVIS 


I 


ni.    WILLIAM  129 

County,  O.,  James  and  his  sisters  to  West  Lebanon, 
Wayne  County,  0. 

Uncle  Robert  lived  to  a  good  old  age.  He  died  in 
Bucyrus,  O.,  at  the  home  of  his  daughter,  Mrs.  Dr.  Ful- 
ton, November  11,  1884,  in  his  ninety-fifth  year.  Mrs. 
Davis  had  preceded  him  to  the  better  world  more  than 
twelve  years  before,  having  died  in  the  same  home  August 
29,  1872. 

They  were  both  good  Christian  people  —  members  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church  —  and  raised  a  fine  family  of 
four  daughters. 

Uncle  Robert  told  me  the  last  time  I  saw  him  in 
Bucyrus  that  he  had  seen  General  Washington,  when  he 
was  a  lad  four  years  old.  One  day,  in  1794,  his  "grand- 
pap"  Davis  (William,  the  elder)  said  to  him,  "Bub, 
would  you  like  to  see  General  Washington.'^"  "Bub," 
of  course,  would  like  to  see  him.  They  walked  across 
the  fields  to  the  "Three  Mountain  Road,"  which  runs 
from  Shippensburg  westward  through  Strasburg.  This 
was  the  road  which  President  Washington  traveled  in 
returning  to  the  East  from  Bedford.  That  was  as  far 
west  as  it  was  necessary  for  him  to  go,  the  Whisky  Insur- 
rection in  western  Pennsylvania  being  about  at  an  end 
when  he  reached  that  point. 

On  the  appearance  of  the  President  and  his  party 
moving  eastward,  "Grandpap"  lifted  little  "Bub"  and 
seated  him  on  the  upper  rail  of  the  fence,  while  he  him- 
self stood  leaning  against  it.  As  the  travelers  approached, 
"Grandpap,"  who  had  often  seen  Washington  during  the 
Jersey  campaign,  said  to  "Bub,"  as  he  pointed  to  one  of 
the  men,  "Look  now!  that's  the  President  of  the  United 
States!  Remember  that  you  have  seen  General  Wash- 
ington!" 

The  children  of  Robert  and  Hannah  J.  Davis  were  five 
in  number:  1.  Sarah  J.,  2.  Elizabeth  A.,  3.  Margaret 
B.,  4.  Mary  S.,  5.  Isabel. 


130  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

1.  Sarah  Jane  Davis  was  born  January  14,  1822,  and 
died  December  21,  1891.  At  the  age  of  fifteen  she  went 
with  her  parents  to  Ohio.  On  June  29,  1846,  she  was 
married  to  the  Rev.  Philo  M.  Semple,  pastor  of  the 
Presbyterian  churches  of  Mt.  Eaton  and  Berhn,  to  whom 
she  was  ever  a  faithful  and  efiBcient  helpmeet.  I  will 
quote  what  was  said  of  Mrs.  Semple  in  an  obituary  notice, 
as  it  describes  the  kind  of  women  so  many  of  the  de- 
scendants of  Mary  Means  have  been:  "Hers  was  a  life 
full  of  energy  and  purpose;  a  life  which  knew  no  weari- 
ness where  the  welfare  of  those  she  loved  was  concerned. 
She  was  an  unselfish  wife  and  mother,  giving  the  best  of 
her  time  and  energy  and  care  to  her  own.  But  though 
her  sympathies  lingered  about  her  own  hearthstone,  they 
did  not  rest  there.  She  was  kind  and  thoughtful  of  the 
comfort  of  those  with  whom  she  came  in  contact,  taking 
an  intelligent  interest  in  all  the  questions  and  reforms  of 
the  day,  ready  to  lend  a  helping  hand  to  every  good  cause. 
She  was  an  earnest  Christian,  a  member  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church,  regular  in  attendance  upon  religious 
services,  an  active  member  of  the  Women's  Missionary 
Society,  prompt  in  obedience  to  whatever  the  Master 
called  her  to  do.  It  was  with  her,  as  with  all  God's  ser- 
vants, the  active  service  was  prompted  by  a  strong  faith. 
She  lived  in  the  strong  sunlight  of  God's  presence,  and 
those  who  mourn  her  death  have  faith  to  believe  that  in 
the  sunlight  of  that  presence  she  is  now  and  shall  be 
evermore." 

Mr.  Semple  was  a  son  of  the  Rev.  Samuel  Semple, 
pastor  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Newcastle,  Pa.  He 
was  one  of  ten  children,  and  was  born  July  7,  1810.  He 
was  graduated  from  Jefferson  College,  Canonsburg,  Pa., 
in  1837,  and  from  the  Western  Theological  Seminary  at 
Allegheny,  Pa.,  in  1840.  After  leaving  the  Seminary  he 
started  West  on  horseback,  with  a  view  to  becoming  a 
home  missionarv  in  the  "Far  West,"  i.e.,  in  Illinois,  which 


REV.    P.    M.    SEMPLE 


REV.    W.    M.    POCOCK,    D.D. 


m.    WILLIAM  131 

was  still  only  a  partially  settled  territory.  Stopping  to 
see  an  uncle,  who  lived  at  Apple  Creek  in  Wayne  County, 
O.,  he  learned  that  Mt.  Eaton  and  Berlin  churches  were 
vacant  and  anxious  to  obtain  a  good  minister.  A  visit 
to  them  resulted  in  his  remaining  in  Ohio,  and  serving 
those  churches  as  their  pastor  for  sixteen  years,  and 
Dalton  Church  for  the  twelve  following  years.  He  spent 
his  declining  years  in  Wooster,  where  he  died,  December 
26,  1891,  only  five  days  after  the  decease  of  Mrs.  Semple. 
He  was  in  his  eighty-second  year. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Semple  had  two  children:  Eugene  P. 
and  Laura  A. 

1.  Eugene  Payson  Semple  was  born  in  Berlin,  O. 
April  25,  1850.  He  spent  several  years  at  Vermilion 
Institute,  Hayesville,  O.,  preparing  for  college,  then 
entered  Wooster  University  at  its  opening  as  a  sopho- 
more, and  was  graduated  with  the  class  of  1873.  He 
then  taught  at  Fredericksburg  for  two  years.  He  was 
graduated  from  the  Union  Theological  Seminary,  New 
York,  in  1878.  He  was  licensed  to  preach  by  the  Wooster 
Presbytery,  and  spent  two  or  three  years  in  Kansas, 
preaching  to  a  charge  consisting  of  three  churches  —  Sil- 
ver Lake,  Kingsville,  and  Rossville.  He  then  became 
one  of  the  professors  in  Biddle  University,  at  Charlotte, 
N.  C,  and  continued  in  that  work  for  eleven  years.  From 
this  he  proceeded  to  Poland,  O.,  where  he  had  charge  of 
the  Poland  Academy  for  three  years.  On  May  8,  1895, 
he  married  Mrs.  Cynthia  May  of  Poland.  After  this, 
having  never  been  ordained  to  the  work  of  the  ministry, 
he  entered  upon  a  business  life.  His  home  is  in  Poland,  O. 
IVIrs.  Semple  is  an  intelligent  and  excellent  Christian 
lady,  who  was  gladly  welcomed  into  the  family  circle. 

2.  Laura  Anna  Semple  was  born  in  Berlin,  O.,  July 
8,  1852.  She  was  graduated  from  W^ooster  University, 
with  the  class  of  1875.  On  September  13,  1877,  she  was 
married  to  the  Rev.  William  M,  Pocock,  a  graduate  of 


132  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

Wooster,  of  the  class  of  1874.  Mr.  Pocock  prepared  for 
college  at  Vermilion  Institute,  Hayesville,  O.,  where  his 
mother,  with  her  family,  resided.  He  is  a  man  of  digni- 
fied and  fine  appearance,  and  an  able  and  earnest  preacher. 
He  has  done  effective  ministerial  work  in  Kansas,  Mis- 
souri, and  Ohio.  He  is  now  pastor  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  of  Blissfield,  Mich.,  and  received  the  degree  of 
D.D.  from  his  alma  mater  in  1911.  Mrs.  Pocock  is  a 
sweet  woman,  well  fitted  by  natural  disposition  and  by 
sincere  and  earnest  piety,  to  be  a  useful  and  beloved 
"mistress  of  the  manse." 

Dr.  and  Mrs.  Pocock  have  had  six  children:  1.  Winn 
S.,  2.  Edna  W.,  3.  Paul  C,  4.  Eugene  W.,  5.  Helen  E., 

6.  ZiLLAH  E. 

(a)  Winn  Semple  Pocock  was  born  July  12,  1878,  and 
died  January  26,  1881. 

(6)  Edna  Winona  Pocock  was  born  August  23,  1880. 
She  attended  school  at  Mansfield,  O.,  two  years,  and  also 
studied  privately.  She  then  spent  two  years  in  Wooster 
University;  then  one  year  in  the  Conservatory  of  Music, 
of  the  same  institution.  She  then  devoted  two  years  to 
music  at  Delaware,  O.  On  August  16,  1905,  she  was 
married  to  the  Rev.  Homer  B.  Henderson,  who  was 
born  at  Iberia,  O.,  December  2,  1879.  He  was  graduated 
from  Cedarville  College  in  1902,  and  from  Xenia  Theo- 
logical Seminary  in  1905.  His  first  charge  was  that  of 
the  United  Presbyterian  Church  of  Uniontown,  Belmont 
County,  O.,  from  1905-08.  From  that  charge  he  was 
transferred  to  the  pastorate  of  the  Wagner  Place  United 
Presbyterian  Church,  St.  Louis,  Mo.  He  has  recently 
accepted  a  call  from  the  First  United  Presbyterian  Church 
of  Detroit,  Mich.,  and  has  moved  with  his  family  to 
that  city. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Henderson  have  had  two  children: 

Thomas  Clark  Henderson,  born  June  17,  1906,  died 
October  19,  1906. 


/ 


REV,    HOMER    B.    HENDERSON 


in.    WILLIAM  133 

John  Homer  Henderson  was  born  October  3,  1909. 

(c)  Paul  Curtis  Pocock  was  born  September  23, 
1882.  He  was  graduated  from  the  Ohio  State  Univer- 
sity in  mechanical  engineering;  and  became  sales  agent 
for  the  Hydraulic-Press  Manufacturing  Company  of  Mt. 
Gilead,  O.,  and  is  now  sales  agent  for  the  same  company 
in  New  York  City.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church,  and  is  not  only  a  very  capable,  but  an  upright 
and  conscientious  young  man. 

(d)  Eugene  William  Pocock  was  born  July  24,  1887. 
He  was  graduated  from  Wooster  University  with  the 
class  of  1911,  and  is  a  candidate  for  the  ministry  in  the 
Presbyterian  Church.  He  gives  promise  of  becoming  an 
excellent  and  eflScient  minister.  He  is  spending  this  year 
as  Y.M.C.A.  Secretary  at  Hershey,  Pa. 

(e)  Helen  Elizabeth  Pocock  was  born  June  23, 
1890.  She  is  a  graduate  of  the  high  school  at  Seven 
Mile,  O.;  also  of  the  County  Normal  School,  located  at 
Blissfield,  Mich.  She  is  teaching  now;  but  hopes  to 
continue  her  studies  at  Wooster  University.  Helen  is  a 
girl  full  of  life  and  fun;  and  at  the  same  time  a  sincere 
and  earnest  Christian. 

(/)  Zillah  Ernestine  Pocock  was  born  January  11, 
1898.  She  is  at  home  —  a  school  girl  who  "has  always 
made  an  exceptionally  good  record." 

None  of  the  young  people  in  this  family  were  more 
than  ten  years  of  age,  some  of  them  being  younger,  when 
they  became  communicants  in  the  church.  This  the 
parents  regard  as  a  special  blessing  in  their  family  life. 

2.  Elizabeth  Ann  Davis  was  born  September  8,  1823, 
and  died  February  13,  1906.  She  was  reared  in  a  good 
home,  and  had  the  advantages  of  an  ordinary  school 
education.  On  October  24,  1844,  she  was  married  to 
Cochran  Fulton,  M.D.,  near  Brookfield,  Stark 
County,  O. 


134  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

Dr.  Fulton  was  born  in  Westmoreland  County,  Pa., 
February  22,  1818,  and  died  May  9,  1893.  Both  Dr.  and 
Mrs.  Fulton  were  members  of  the  Presbyterian  Church. 
Soon  after  their  marriage  they  moved  to  Bueyrus,  where 
they  spent  the  remainder  of  their  lives,  Dr.  Fulton  prac- 
tising medicine,  and  having  an  interest  in  the  drug  busi- 
ness, which  was  carried  on  by  his  son.  The  doctor  was 
an  ardent  Democrat,  and  quite  prominent  in  the  affairs 
of  the  city  and  county.  t 

Mrs.  Fulton  was  a  first-rate  housekeeper;  she  was 
much  interested  in  religion  and  the  Church;  she  had  a 
warm  heart,  and  was  kind  and  hospitable,  taking  great 
pleasure  in  welcoming  her  friends  to  her  pleasant 
home. 

Dr.  and  Mrs.  Fulton  had  two  children:  Anna  Z.  and 
Melancthon  D. 

1.  Anna  Zillah  Fulton  was  born  near  Massillon,  O., 
August  5,  1845.  In  her  infancy  Dr.  Fulton  came  to 
Bueyrus  with  his  family,  and  here  she  grew  to  woman- 
hood. On  September  11,  1866,  she  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  the  Rev.  A.  S.  Milholland,  who  had  been 
pastor  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Bueyrus  for  two 
years  during  the  war,  this  being  his  first  pastorate.  In 
1880  he  accepted  the  pastorate  at  Uniontown,  Pa.,  and 
that  city  has  ever  since  been  their  home. 

From  childhood  Mrs.  Milholland  was  a  faithful  and 
consistent  member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  a  humble 
and  useful  follower  of  the  lowly  Nazarene. 

In  her  early  life  the  purity  and  sweetness  of  her  char- 
acter endeared  her  to  a  host  of  friends  in  Bueyrus,  and 
in  her  husband's  field  of  labor.  She  was  his  true  helpmeet, 
winning  the  respect  and  love  of  those  among  whom  her 
life  was  spent.  Her  charity  was  broad,  and  her  heart 
overflowed  with  kindness  and  generosity.  Her  disposi- 
tion was  sunny,  and  her  manner  winning.  Her  faith  was 
simple,  assured,  and  childlike.     She  did,  without  question 


I 


REV.    A.    S.    MILHOLLAND,    D.D. 


III.    WILLIAM  135 

or  complaint,  the  work  that  came  to  her  hand.  Her 
labors  are  ended.  No  longer  does  she  "see  through  a 
glass  darkly,  but  face  to  face,"  and  "knows  even  as  she 
is  known,"  and  for  her  "death  is  swallowed  up  in 
victory." 

Alexander  Small  Milholland  was  born  in  Chan- 
dlersville,  O.,  and  was  graduated  from  Muskingum  College, 
O.,  in  1860,  and  from  the  Western  Theological  Seminary, 
at  Allegheny,  in  1863.  He  was  licensed  to  preach  by  the 
Presbytery  of  Zanesville,  May  8,  1862;  and  ordained  to 
the  Gospel  ministry  by  the  Presbytery  of  Marion  in  1864. 
He  was  pastor  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Bucyrus, 
1864-66.  He  was  then  pastor  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 
of  Millersburg,  O.,  1866-77.  He  was  pastor-elect  at 
Brownsville,  Pa.,  for  two  years,  when  he  accepted  a  call 
to  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Uniontown,  Pa.^ 
where  he  was  a  faithful  and  successful  pastor  from  May 
1,  1880,  to  October  10,  1906. 

Mr.  JVIilholland,  while  pastor  at  Millersburg,  was  elected 
superintendent  of  schools,  and  acted  in  that  capacity  for 
three  years.  He  received  the  honorary  degree  of  D.D. 
from  the  University  of  Wooster  in  1885.  He  was  pastor 
emeritus  of  the  church  at  Uniontown  just  one  year,  when 
his  death  occurred  suddenly,  October  10,  1906,  at  the  age 
of  sixty-four  years.  He  was  buried  by  the  side  of  his 
beloved  wife  in  Oakwood  Cemeterj^  at  Bucyrus. 

2.  Melancthon  Delnar  Fulton  was  born  in  Bucyrus, 
December  28,  1847.  On  June  2,  1871,  he  married  Addie 
Keplinger  of  Bucyrus.  His  business  was  that  of  a 
druggist.  He  died  at  his  residence,  on  North  Walnut 
Street,  December  27,  1889,  and  was  buried  in  Oakwood 
Cemetery.  His  widow  died  February  13,  1904,  and  was 
buried  by  his  side. 

3.  Margaret  Baird  Davis  was  born  December  20, 
1825,  and  died  in  March,  1829. 


136  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

4.  Mary  Stewart  Davis  was  born  in  Shippensburg, 
Pa.,  November  15,  1828.  On  October  2,  1851,  she  was 
married  to  Rufus  Kirk,  in  Stark  County,  O.  She  died 
at  their  home  in  Lamed,  Kan.,  October  12,  1897.  She 
was  a  faithful  and  devoted  wife,  and  the  wise  and  tender 
mother  of  seven  children.  Two  years  after  her  death  Mr. 
Kirk  wrote  to  me,  "I  can  assure  you  that  the  Hght  of 
our  home  is  gone,  and  I  am  one  of  the  lonehest  mortals 
on  earth.  No  person  but  myself  can  ever  imagine  the 
loneliness  that  I  suffer.  For  when  I  tell  you  in  truth 
that  we  were  more  like  lovers  the  last  year  of  my  dear 
wife's  life  than  the  first  year  of  our  married  life  you  can 
imagine  how  I  miss  her."  This  expression  of  feeling  was 
greatly  to  the  credit  and  honor  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Kirk. 
He  was  certainly  a  man  of  large  and  warm  heart.  His 
wife,  Mary  Davis,  was  a  woman,  as  I  well  remember,  of 
a  bright  and  joyous  spirit,  one  calculated  to  cheer  and 
strengthen  a  husband,  and  to  make  a  happy  home;  one 
to  be  most  sadly  missed,  when  called  up  higher;  one 
whose  "children  rise  up,  and  call  her  blessed;  her  hus- 
band also,  and  he  praiseth  her." 

Rufus  Kirk  died  January  1,  1905,  at  Larned,  Kan., 
lacking  but  a  few  days  of  being  eighty  years  of  age. 

The  children  of  this  marriage  were  six  in  number: 
1.  Ada  C,  2.  Luella  M.,  3.  Mina  V.,  4.  Truman  H., 
5.  Burton  D.,  6.  An  infant  son,  born  December  1,  1871, 
who  lived  but  three  days. 

1.  Ada  Clara  Kirk  was  born  April  11,  1855,  and  was 
married  at  Freeport,  111.,  March  17,  1875,  to  Americus 
J.  Runner,  a  jeweler  of  that  place. 

Mr.  Runner  was  a  fine  Christian  gentleman,  having 
only  the  ordinary  education,  but  one  who  was  self-edu- 
cated by  means  of  books,  which  he  dearly  loved.  He  was 
a  well  informed  man,  and  of  excellent  judgment.  He 
was  a  member  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  Since 
Mrs.   Runner   was   an   unusually   amiable   and   sensible 


in.    WILLI.\M  137 

young  woman,  the  marriage  was  a  most  happy  one.  But, 
alas!  their  happiness  was  cut  short  by  the  death  of  Mr. 
Runner  September  2,  1880. 

Three  children  blessed  their  union:  1.  Robert  K., 
2.  Pansy,  3.  Edna. 

(a)  Robert  Kirk  Runner  was  a  "centennial"  child, 
and  a  New  Year's  gift.  When  about  seventeen,  his 
uncle,  Mr.  Z.  T.  F.  Runner,  the  only  brother  of  Mr. 
A.  J.  Runner,  deceased,  took  charge  of  Robert,  and 
instructed  him  in  all  the  details  of  the  business  in  which 
he  himself  w^as  engaged  —  that  of  building  and  managing 
gas  plants.  He  then  obtained  for  him  a  good  position 
in  the  gas  plant  of  De  Kalb,  111.  So  satisfactory  was 
Robert's  work  that  he  was  soon  made  manager  of  the 
concern.  Afterward  the  uncle  and  Robert  decided  to 
go  into  business  for  themselves.  Robert  Kirk  resigned 
his  position  at  De  Kalb,  and  they  are  now  at  Charles  City, 
Iowa,  members  of  the  Charles  City  Gas  Company,  of 
which  Z.  T.  F.  Runner  is  president,  and  R.  K.  Runner, 
secretary  and  manager.  Robert  Runner,  without  a  col- 
lege education,  has  been  a  great  reader,  like  his  father, 
has  become  possessed  of  much  general  information,  and, 
having  fine  business  abilities  and  being  a  sincere  and 
earnest  Christian,  we  may  safely  predict  for  him  a  suc- 
cessful and,  what  is  better  and  rarer,  a  happy  life. 

(6)  Pansy  Runner  was  born  August  30,  1877.  She 
became  a  trained  nurse,  having  received  her  training  in 
St.  Luke's  Hospital,  Chicago.  Among  the  physicians 
attending  the  hospital,  at  the  time  she  was  there,  was  Dr. 
Frederick  Henry  Batman.  Cupid  does  his  work  in  a 
hospital  as  well  as  anywhere  else,  and  as  the  result  Dr. 
Batman  and  Pansy  were  married  in  De  Kalb,  111.,  Decem- 
ber, 2,  1906.  The  doctor  had  then,  as  now,  an  exten- 
sive practice  in  Bloomington,  Ind.,  where  he  had  a 
cozy  and  comfortable  home  waiting  for  the  bride. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  Christian  Church. 


138  THE   DAVIS    FAMILY 

Mrs.  Batman  has  united  with  the  church  of  which  her 
husband  is  a  member.  This  happy  home  was  blessed  in 
August,  1911,  by  the  advent  of  a  daughter,  Betty 
Batman. 

(c)  Edna  Runner  was  born  October  12,  1879.  After 
her  graduation  from  the  high  school  of  Freeport,  111.,  she 
attended  and  was  graduated  from  the  Bloomington,  111., 
Normal  School.  Miss  Runner  is  very  fond  of  reading 
and  study.  She  has  been  teaching  for  several  years 
with  great  success.  At  present  her  work  is  in  the  public 
schools  of  Seattle,  Wash. 

2.  LuELLA  May  Kirk  was  born  December  12,  1856, 
and  died  February  23,  1872,  in  her  sixteenth  year. 

3.  Mina  Victoria  Kirk  was  born  at  Freeport,  III., 
November  3,  1860.  On  December  16,  1879,  she  was 
married,  at  Larned,  Kan.,  to  William  H.  Ziegler,  who 
was  born  at  Reading,  Pa.,  March  16,  1849.  He  is  travel- 
ing salesman  for  the  Cudahy  Packing  Company,  of  Wich- 
ita, Kan.  The  family  live  in  the  "old  home"  in  Larned. 
Mrs.  Ziegler  and  all  her  children  are  members  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church.  In  June,  1909,  the  writer  had  the 
pleasure  of  visiting  this  agreeable  family  in  their  pleasant 
home,  and  has  delightful  recollections  of  the  friendship 
and  cordiality  with  which  he  was  received. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ziegler  have  had  four  children:  1.  Louise 
T.,  2.  Ada  F.,  3.  Henrietta,  4.  Rufus  K. 

(a)  Louise  Taylor  Ziegler  was  born  at  Larned,  Kan., 
December  27,  1880.  She  is  an  intelligent  and  interesting 
young  lady  who  is  teaching  in  the  public  schools  of 
Larned;  one  of  that  noble  band  of  young  women  who 
have  so  important  a  part  in  forming  the  character  of  the 
next  generation,  and  in  deciding  the  future  of  our  country. 

(b)  Ada  Florence  Ziegler  was  born  February  28, 
1882.  She  was  married,  April  26,  1903,  to  Walter  A. 
Babbitt,  of  Larned.  Their  son,  Harry  Ziegler  Babbitt, 
was  born  March  24,  1904;  and  the  young  mother,  dear 


ni.    WILLIAM  139 

as  she  was  to  so  many  hearts,  passed  away,  with  the 
Christian's  blessed  hope,  on  the  thirtieth  of  the  same 
month.  The  son,  Harry,  a  fine,  healthy,  bright  little 
fellow,  is  one  of  the  pleasant  circle  in  the  home  of  the 
Zieglers  in  Lamed. 

(c)  Henrietta  Ziegler,  a  handsome  and  attractive 
young  lady,  was  born  November  11,  1887,  and  is  book- 
keeper in  one  of  the  principal  mercantile  establishments 
of  Larned. 

(d)  RuFus  Kirk  Ziegler  was  born  on  Christmas  Day, 
1892.  He  is  in  the  high  school  of  Larned,  and  being  full 
of  life  and  health,  and  enjoying  good  advantages,  and 
withal  being  a  Christian  youth,  it  is  believed  that  he 
will  make  such  a  man  as  his  parents  and  friends  will  be 
proud  of. 

4.  Truman  Hurd  Kirk  was  born  July  14,  1862.  He 
married  Mrs.  Eva  Naylor,  of  Las  Animas,  Colo.  Their 
home  is  in  Las  Animas. 

5.  Burton  Davis  Kirk  was  born  February  25,  1866. 
He  remains  unmarried. 

5.  Isabel  Davis,  fifth  daughter  of  Robert  and  Han- 
nah Davis,  was  born  in  Shippensburg,  Pa.,  March  8, 
1831,  and  died  at  Hutchinson,  Kan.,  March  1,  1895, 
when  almost  sixty-four  years  of  age.  The  family  moved 
to  Ohio  in  1837.  Isabel  was  married  to  William  John- 
ston Van  Eman  in  Stark  County,  October  24,  1848.  Mr. 
Van  Eman  was  born  in  that  county  July  5,  1825. 

After  a  few  years  they  moved  to  the  near-by  county 
of  Richland.  They  lived  in  the  southeastern  part  of  the 
county,  within  the  bounds  of  the  Clear  Fork  Presbyterian 
Church.  From  this  they  moved  after  a  few  years  to 
Illinois,  where  I  visited  them  in  the  summer  of  1866. 
They  were  living  on  a  farm  near  Freeport.  They  after- 
ward moved  to  Kansas,  where  most  of  the  family  are 
still  living.     Mr.  Van  Eman  was  killed  in  a  cyclone  at 


140  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

Langdon,  Reno  County,  Kan.,  May  17,  1878,  when 
about  fifty-three  years  of  age.  He  was  a  good  man  — 
one  who  "feared  God  with  all  his  house."  His  walk  was 
that  of  an  humble  and  obedient  Christian,  and  he  was 
well  prepared  for  this  sudden  translation  to  the  higher 
and  better  life.  He  had  been  for  many  years  an  elder 
in  the  Presbyterian  Church. 

Isabel  Davis,  his  wife,  was  a  worthy  helpmate  of  such 
a  man.  She  was  a  sincere  and  earnest  Christian;  faith- 
ful in  all  the  relations  she  sustained  to  her  husband,  chil- 
dren, and  to  all  around  her.  She  lived  a  quiet  and  retired 
life;  but  in  that  world  to  which  she  has  gone,  where,  in 
so  many  cases,  the  first  shall  be  last,  and  the  last  first, 
the  record  of  the  faithful  ones  will  be  more  brilliant  than 
that  of  many  who  in  this  world  are  far  more  conspicuous. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Van  Eman  had  nine  children:  1.  Robert 
C,  2.  Abram  W.,  3.  Hannah  M.,  4.  Rurus  M.,  5.  Ettie 
B.,  6.  Anna  M.,  7.  Charles  E.,  8.  William  G.,  9.  James  L. 

1.  Robert  C.  Van  Eman  was  born  in  Stark  County, 
O.,  August  11,  1849.  He  married  Martha  A.  Deffen- 
baugh  at  Langdon,  Reno  County,  Kan.,  June  7,  1883. 
They  had  one  daughter,  Frances  May  Van  Eman.  Mr. 
Van  Eman  is  a  carpenter  and  lived  for  some  years  in 
Hutchinson,  Kan.  Mrs.  Van  Eman  died  in  Langdon 
November  3,  1898,  her  age  being  fifty-two.  The  daugh- 
ter was  then  only  ten  years  old,  and  from  that  time 
found  a  home  with  her  mother's  sister  at  Chilton,  Mo. 
She  attended  a  State  Normal  School  in  Missouri  for  two 
years  and  taught  for  a  time.  She  was  married,  August 
3,  1907,  to  Thomas  Dunn,  of  Forsyth,  111.  They  are 
living  on  a  farm  near  that  place.  Their  daughter,  Cath- 
erine Dunn,  was  born  January  27,  1909. 

Mr.  R.  C.  Van  Eman  is  with  the  Dunns  at  Forsyth, 
and  writes  thus  in  reference  to  himself  and  brothers: 
*'We  are  all  trying  to  live  in  this  life  in  such  a  way  that 
when  death  comes  we  shall  welcome  it  as  a  happy  change. 


i 


III.    WILLIAM  141 

No  one  of  us  has  been  very  successful,  so  far  as  this  h'fe 
is  concerned.  We  have  not  laid  up  much  of  this  world's 
goods.  But  we  firmly  believe  that  it  will  be  well  with 
us  in  the  next  life."  We  hope  that  even  yet  these  dear 
cousins  may  secure  more  of  the  good  things  that  beautiful 
Kansas  yields  to  willing  workers. 

2.  Abram  W^iley  Van  Eman  was  born  in  Stark  County, 
O.,  August  1,  1851.  He  married  Luna  Stout,  at  Hutch- 
inson, Kan.,  in  1886.     To  them  were  born  two  daughters: 

1.  Vera  Van  Eman,  born  in  Hartland,  Kan.,  January  22, 
1887,  2.  Maud  Van  Eman,  who  was  born  January  10, 
1889,  and  died  March  30,  1891. 

Mr.  A.  W.  Van  Eman  is  living  in  Hutchinson,  Kan. 
Vera  is  cashier  in  the  large  establishment  of  the  Morris 
Packing  Company  in  Kansas  City,  Kan.  Her  mother  is 
teaching  typewriting  and  stenography  in  Central  Business 
College.     Their  home  is  in  Kansas  City,  Mo. 

3.  Hannah  IVIary  Van  Eman  was  born  in  Richland 
County,  O.,  January  30,  1854.  She  was  married  to  Win- 
field  Scott  Deisher,  September  12,  1877,  in  Hutchin- 
son,  Kan.     They   have   had   five   daughters:   1.   Maud, 

2.  Della,  3.  Grace,  4.  Florence,  5.  Dorothy. 

(a)  Maud  Deisher  was  born  November  3,  1879,  in 
Hastings,  Neb.  She  was  a  member  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church,  and  of  the  Junior  Class  in  the  University  of 
Denver.  But  it  pleased  the  Lord  to  take  home  to  Him- 
self this  dear  daughter  July  22,  1904. 

(6)  Della  Deisher  was  born  in  Hastings,  Neb.,  and 
died  in  infancy. 

(c)  Grace  Deisher  was  born  October  29,  1883,  in 
Lincoln,  Neb.  She  completed  the  junior  year  in  Denver 
University  and  was  afterward  a  student  in  the  college 
at  Claremont,  Cal.,  making  a  specialty  of  music.  She 
is  a  member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church. 

(d)  Florence  Deisher  was  born  June  1,  1887,  in 
Holdridge,  Neb.     Like  her  sisters,  she  has  had  fine  educa- 


142  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

tional  advantages.  And  to  gratify  her  special  taste  and 
talent  she  has  attended  the  Cumnock  School  of  Expres- 
sion in  Los  Angeles,  Cal.,  and  the  Emerson  School  of 
Expression  in  Boston,  Mass. 

(e)  Dorothy  Deisher  was  born  July  14,  1896,  in 
Denver,  Colo.  She  is  now  enjoying  the  delights  of  a 
schoolgirl's  life  in  one  of  the  high  schools  of  her  native  city. 

Mr.  Scott  Deisher  has  been  a  successful  business  man, 
having  large  interests  in  Nebraska  and  Colorado.  He  is  an 
intelligent,  upright,  and  in  every  way  agreeable  man;  an 
excellent  husband  and  father.  Mrs.  Deisher  is  a  member 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  a  devoted  wife  and  mother;  the 
efficient  mistress  of  a  pleasant  home;  and  a  very  agree- 
able lady.  During  the  meeting  of  our  General  Assembly 
in  Denver,  in  May,  1909,  I  enjoyed  the  hospitality  of 
this  delightful  Christian  family,  and  found  myself  as 
much  at  home  as  if  I  had  known  them  all  my  life. 

4.  RuFUS  Melancthon  Van  Eman  was  born  March 
14,  1856,  in  Richland  County,  O.  He  has  been  in  Cali- 
fornia for  many  years  engaged  in  mining.  At  last 
accounts  he  was  living  in  Fresno. 

5.  Ettie  Belle  Van  Eman  was  born  July  5,  1860,  in 
Ogle  County,  111.,  and  died  there  April  21,  1863. 

6.  Anna  Myrtle  Van  Eman  was  born  August  10, 
1862,  in  Ogle  County,  111.  She  lives  in  her  own  home  in 
Hutchinson,  Kan.,  is  a  member  of  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church  of  that  city,  and  is  a  very  fine  young  woman, 
loved  by  all  who  know  her.  She  has  a  kind,  sisterly,  not 
to  say  motherly,  care  for  her  three  brothers  who  are 
employed  in  Hutchinson. 

7.  Charles  Edwin  Van  Eman  was  born  May  19, 
1865,  in  Ogle  County,  111.     He  is  now  living  in  Hutchinson. 

8.  William  Glenn  Van  Eman  was  born  September 
16,  1868,  in  Stephenson  County,  III.  In  1399  his  oldest 
brother  wrote,  "William  G.  lives  in  Anaconda,  Mont., 
is  a  printer  by  trade,  and  is  unmarried."     He  afterward 


m.  ^\^LLIAM  143 

wrote  that  he  died  of  pneumonia  in  Butte,  Mont.,  Janu- 
ary 1,  1901.  His  body  was  brought  to  Hutchinson,  and 
buried  beside  those  of  his  parents. 

9.  James  Logan  Van  Eman  was  born  December  28, 
1870,  in  Stephenson  County,  111.  When  I  visited  the 
family  in  the  summer  of  1909  the  three  brothers,  Wiley, 
Charles,  and  James,  were  cultivating  their  farm  a  few 
miles  from  Hutchinson,  while  their  sister,  INIyrtle,  had 
her  hands  very  full,  between  the  domestic  cares  indoors 
and  the  cows  and  chickens  out  of  doors.  Since  that  they 
have  sold  the  farm  and  have  all  returned  to  Hutchinson. 
James  and  Charles  have  re-entered  the  service  of  the 
Santa  Fe  Railway  Company,  and  Wiley  is  in  a  large 
grocery  establishment. 

C.  Joseph  Davis,  third  son  of  William  Davis  and 
Sarah  Stewart,  was  born  March  31,  1792,  and  died  March 
28,  1795. 

D.  Elizabeth  Davis  was  born  on  the  old  home  farm 
January  15,  1796.  She  was  the  oldest  daughter  of  the 
family,  and  possessed  a  good  deal  of  what  Mrs.  Stowe 
in  her  Minister  s  Wooing  calls  "faculty."  She  was  indus- 
trious and  thrifty,  and  an  excellent  housekeeper.  She 
and  her  sister  Mary  and  their  brother  James  lived  to- 
gether for  some  years  on  the  old  farm  in  Franklin  County; 
but  as  congenial  friends  were  moving  westward,  and  the 
great  congregation  at  Rocky  Spring  was  becoming  very 
small,  they  too  became  restless,  sold  the  farm,  and  moved 
to  Ohio.  Not  long  after  their  removal,  in  1837,  Mary 
was  married,  and  soon  after  her  brother  James  followed 
suit  and  married.  Thereupon  Elizabeth  made  her  home 
with  her  niece,  Mrs.  Semple,  at  Berlin,  O.  She  after- 
ward made  her  home  with  her  sister  Mary  at  Centralia, 
III.  In  1874  she  came  to  Wooster  and  became  one  of 
the  family  of  the  writer  of  this  record.     She  was  with  us 


144  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

from  the  fall  of  1874  until  her  death  in  the  spring  of  1885, 
when  she  was  in  her  ninetieth  year, 

"Aunt  Betsy"  was  a  woman  of  deep  and  strong  re- 
ligious convictions,  truly  pious  and  conscientious,  mild 
and  gentle  in  her  manners,  and  worthy  to  be  held  in 
affectionate  remembrance.  She  was  no  doubt  baptized 
by  Mr.  Craighead,  the  hero  of  Rocky  Spring,  and  received 
into  the  communion  of  the  church  by  Dr.  Francis  Herron. 
She  had  an  excellent  memory,  and  having  visited  Bucks 
County  in  her  girlhood,  to  see  some  of  the  friends  who 
still  tarried  there,  she  could,  if  I  had  been  as  interested 
in  family  history  while  she  was  with  us  as  I  am  now,  have 
given  me  a  large  amount  of  information  which  I  would 
have  prized.  But  it  is  now  lost.  There  is  no  one  living 
who  can  tell  us  all  about  the  early  Davises,  the  Meanses, 
the  Harts,  the  Stewarts,  and  the  rest.  It  is  lost  until, 
as  a  family,  we  meet  in  a  grand  reunion  in  one  of  the 
"heavenly  places." 

E.  James  Davis  was  born  September  3, 1797.  He  was 
a  lifelong  farmer.  He  sold  and  left  the  old  home  farm 
in  1836.  I  remember  seeing  him  in  the  summer  of  that 
year  when  he  had  started  on  horseback  to  visit  the  West- 
ern country.  He  bought  a  farm  near  West  Lebanon, 
Wayne  County,  O.,  where,  first  with  his  sisters,  after- 
ward with  his  wife,  Nancy  Edgar,  he  spent  the  remain- 
der of  his  life.  He  was  a  quiet,  industrious  man,  highly 
respected  by  all  who  knew  him.  He  and  Mrs.  Davis 
were  members  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Mt.  Eaton. 
After  his  death  Mrs.  Davis  sold  the  farm  and  bought  a 
home  in  the  village  of  West  Lebanon,  where  she  still  lives. 

F.  John  Davis  was  born  February  9,  1800,  and  died 
September  5,  1805. 

G.  Mary   Davis   was  born  April   9,  1803,  and   was 


IV.    JOHN  145 

baptized  by  Rev.  Dr.  Herron.  She  lived  in  the  old  home 
until  1836,  leading  a  peaceful,  happy  life,  the  chief  events 
being  the  Sabbath  journey  to  Rocky  Spring,  and  an 
occasional  visit  to  Chambersburg,  or  Shippensburg.  She 
went  to  Ohio  in  the  spring  of  1837,  with  her  brother  and 
sister,  Uncle  Robert  and  his  family  going  at  the  same 
time.  After  some  years  she  was  married  to  Stephen 
Blythe,  of  Wayne  County,  O.  They  went  to  Centralia, 
111.,  where  they  lived  until  Mr.  Blythe's  death.  She  then 
returned  to  Ohio,  and  spent  the  last  years  of  her  life  at 
Wooster,  in  the  family  of  the  Rev.  P.  M.  Semple,  whose 
wife  was  her  niece,  Sarah  Jane  Davis.  My  father,  in  his 
Family  Record  calls  her  "Maria."  In  all  her  early  life  she 
was  known  as  "Polly  Davis,"  and  she  was  a  very  pretty, 
buxom,  and  attractive  girl.  I  first  knew  her  and  loved 
her  in  my  childhood  as  "Aunt  Polly."  She  was  of  a 
very  cheerful  and  happy  disposition.  She  was  from 
early  life  a  sincere  and  consistent  Christian,  and  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Presbyterian  Church.  The  two  sisters,  Eliza- 
beth and  Mary,  lie  side  by  side  in  the  beautiful  cemetery 
on  Madison  Hill,  Wooster. 


IV.    JOHN 

John  Davis,  fourth  son  of  William  and  Mary  Means 
Davis,  was  born  in  Tinicum  Township,  Bucks  County, 
Pa.,  August  25,  1764,  and  died  at  Meadville,  Pa.,  Febru- 
ary 27,  1839.  ^^'^len  as  yet  but  a  lad,  he  owned  a  pair 
of  horses  presented  to  him  by  an  uncle  after  whom  he 
was  named,  and  which  he  allowed  no  one  but  himself 
to  drive,  ^^^len  his  father  wished  to  send  a  wagon  load 
of  provisions  for  the  half-starved  soldiers,  John  was  ready, 
with  his  horses,  to  drive  the  wagon  to  Washington's 
headquarters.  The  General  himself  met  him,  and,  shak- 
ing hands  with  him,  warmly  thanked  him  publicly  for 
his  promptness.     He  told  General   Washington  that  he 


146  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

wished  to  enter  the  army.  The  General  replied  that  he 
was  too  young  for  army  life,  but  he  kept  him  at  his  head- 
quarters and  subsequently  made  him  deputy  quarter- 
master, which  position  he  occupied  in  1781.^  Mrs.  Lidie 
H.  Gordon  says,  "We  have  an  old  newspaper  clipping 
referring  to  this  period,  in  which  he  is  called  'Quarter- 
master Davis.'  This  episode  in  grandfather's  life  I  have 
heard  talked  over  many  times  by  mother,  and  her  brother, 
Kennedy,  and  her  sisters,  upon  the  occasions  of  their 
visits  to  our  home," 

Mr.  Davis  went  to  Meadville,  a  small  village  of  two 
or  three  hundred  inhabitants,  in  1795.  .At  a  public  sale 
of  lots,  held  in  the  summer  of  that  year,  Mr,  John  Davis 
was  one  of  the  purchasers.  "During  the  war  of  1812 
Mr.  Davis,  with  his  family,  was  living  at  Meadville. 
The  British  were  expected  to  attack  Erie,  Pa.,  and  every 
able-bodied  man,  and  every  boy  who  could  carry  a  gun, 
enlisted,  and  marched  to  Erie.  Mr.  John  Davis  was 
again  to  the  fore.  I  have  heard  my  uncle,  Kennedy  Davis, 
say  that  there  were  only  two  very  aged  men  left  in  Mead- 
ville with  the  women  and  young  children."  (Mrs.  Gordon.) 

It  was  said  of  Mr.  John  Davis  that  his  success  in  life 
was  due  to  his  possessing  good  intellectual  faculties,  his 
laborious  preparation  for  and  performance  of  every  duty 
undertaken,  his  rigid  temperance  in  living,  great  moral 
courage,  and  kindliness  of  heart.  He  was  a  wise  and 
peaceful  man,  and  happy  in  possessing  the  good-will  and 
confidence  of  all  who  knew  him.  His  daughter,  Mrs. 
Homer,  said  that  very  often,  when  cases  were  to  be 
decided  by  arbitration,  he  would  be  sent  for,  both  during 
his  residence  in  Pittsburg  and,  later,  in  Crawford  County. 
His  intelligence  and  interest  in  the  general  welfare,  espe- 
cially in  education,  was  shown  in  his  giving  one  hundred 
and  fifty  dollars  (a  large  contribution  for  those  days) 
to  aid  in  the  establishment  of  the  Meadville  Academy. 

» Pa.  Archives,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  698. 


IV.   JOHN  147 

John  Davis  and  Mary  McGunnegle  were  married 
October  14,  1797.  George  W.  McGunnegle  was  born  in 
County  Donegal,  Ireland,  in  1738.  He  married  Mar- 
garet Kennedy  in  1766,  came  to  America  the  same  year, 
and  settled  at  Carlisle,  Pa.  In  June,  1789,  he  moved  to 
Pittsburg,  Pa.,  where  he  died  in  1818,  and  is  buried  beside 
his  wife  in  old  Trinity  church-yard.  Mr.  McGunnegle 
was  an  ardent  churchman,  and  manifested  his  zeal  in 
efforts  to  have  an  Episcopal  church  organized  in  Pitts- 
burg. The  first  service  of  that  church  was  held  at  his 
home  on  Market  Street.  In  1805  the  "Old  Round 
Church,"  as  it  came  to  be  called,  from  its  shape,  was 
built,  and  George  McGunnegle  was  one  of  the  vestrymen. 
The  Rev.  John  Taylor,  or  "Father  Taylor,"  as  he  was 
lovingly  called,  was  the  minister. 

At  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolutionary  War,  George  W. 
McGunnegle,  being  a  true  and  ardent  patriot,  responded 
at  once  to  the  call  of  his  adopted  country,  and  served 
in  the  navy  for  several  years. 

IVIr.  and  Mrs.  McGunnegle  had  thirteen  children,  all 
born  at  Carlisle,  Pa.  Anna,  the  eldest  of  the  family, 
married  INIr.  Peter  Dick,  who  settled  in  Meadville,  Pa. 
Catharine  was  married  to  Captain  Johnson,  of  the  United 
States  Army,  who  had  command  of  Fort  Fayette,  Pitts- 
burg. He  took  a  prominent  part  in  the  War  of  1812. 
Mary,  the  third  daughter,  made  a  visit  to  her  sister, 
Mrs.  Dick,  at  Meadville,  where  she  met  the  subject  of 
this  sketch.  They  were  wedded  in  Pittsburg  by  Father 
Taylor.  They  lived  in  Meadville  until  1814,  when  they 
moved  to  Pittsburg.  In  1828  they  returned  to  Meadville, 
or,  as  I  suppose,  to  Wilson's  Run,  near  Meadville,  where 
Mr.  Davis  owned  four  hundred  acres  of  land.  There  they 
lived  until  his  death,  which  occurred  February  27,  1839. 
Mrs.  Davis  died  in  the  home  of  her  son-in-law,  John 
Horner,  Esq.,  where  she  spent  the  last  twelve  years  of  her 
life.     She  was  buried  in  Allegheny  Cemetery,  Pittsburg. 


148  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  John  Davis  had  eight  children:  1.  George 
M.,  2.  Eliza  M.,  3.  William,  4.  Kennedy,  5.  Mary  M., 
6.  James  M.,  7.  Margaret,  8.  Eleanor  G. 

A.  George  McGunnegle  Davis  was  born  at  Mead- 
ville  January  28,  1799.  He  went  to  Cincinnati  in  1820, 
and  engaged  in  mercantile  pursuits.  He  made  many 
warm  friends  by  his  charming  manners,  and  sterling 
qualities  of  head  and  heart.  He  died  in  that  city  Sep- 
tember 3,  1827,  in  the  twenty-ninth  year  of  his  age. 

B.  Eliza  McGunnegle  Davis  was  born  in  Meadville 
June  25,  1800,  and  died  in  Pittsburg  August  18,  1890. 
She  was  married  twice  —  first,  to  George  Russell,  of 
Philadelphia.  They  had  three  children:  George  G.,  John, 
and  Mary.  George  G.  Russell  married  Elizabeth 
James  of  Philadelphia.  He  died  when  still  a  young  man. 
John  Russell  is  still  living.  Mary  Russell  was  mar- 
ried, and  had  a  daughter,  Mary,  who  died  when  only 
five  years  of  age. 

After  Mr.  Russell's  death,  Mrs.  Russell  was  wedded  to 
John  McFaden  of  Pittsburg,  March  24,  1829. 

Mrs.  McFaden  was  present  at  the  first  Episcopal 
service  held  in  Pittsburg  in  the  parlor  of  her  grandfather, 
G.  W.  McGunnegle.  She  attended  the  "Old  Round 
Church"  years  before  the  advent  of  Bishop  White, 
and  the  consecration  of  the  church.  She  was  confirmed 
by  Bishop  White,  the  second  American  Bishop  of  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church;  and  she  was  the  oldest 
member  of  Trinity  Church  at  the  time  of  her  decease  in 
1890.  The  compiler  of  this  book  had  the  pleasure  of  a 
visit  from  Mrs.  McFaden,  in  company  with  his  mother, 
Mrs.  Davis,  of  Chambersburg,  at  his  home  in  Bedford, 
Pa.,  in  the  fall  of  1851.  Mrs.  McFaden  was  an  interesting 
lady,  of  gentle  spirit  and  winning  manners.  She  related 
many   reminiscences    of   the   early    history    of    Western 


MRS.   JOHN    M.    MCFADEX 


1 


JOHN    M.    M  C  F  A  D  E  N 


IV.    JOHN  149 

Pennsylvania.  She  and  her  husband  are  buried  in  Alle- 
gheny Cemetery. 

Mr.  John  McFaden  was  born  in  Scotland  in  1801,  and 
died  in  Pittsburg,  June  29,  1851. 

He  was  prominent  in  the  affairs  of  Pittsburg  during 
the  early  half  of  the  nineteenth  century. 

The  records  of  the  city  show  his  activity,  energy,  and 
business  tact  from  the  early  twenties  up  to  the  time 
of  his  death  in  1851. 

We  find  from  his  diary,  under  date  of  1825,  that  he  and 
Oliver  Evans  were  the  founders  of  the  Stone  Steam  Flour 
Mill  on  Water  Street,  Pittsburg,  and  that  they  took  out 
some  of  the  first  patents  issued  by  the  United  States 
Patent  OflSce  for  Plows  and  Flour  Mill  Machinery. 

In  1828  John  McFaden  was  Consulting  Engineer  in 
the  construction  of  Pittsburg's  first  waterworks.  Pumps 
were  placed  at  the  foot  of  Cecil's  Alley  on  the  Allegheny 
River.  The  Basin  was  on  Grant's  Hill.  This  work  was 
completed  in  1829. 

In  1830  he  built  the  first  fire  engine,  organized  Pitts- 
burg's first  Volunteer  Fire  Engine  Company,  and  was 
the  President  and  Chief  Engineer.  The  name  of  the 
engine  was  "Fame." 

In  1852,  at  the  request  and  for  the  account  of  the  Pitts- 
burg Insurance  companies,  John  McFaden  organized  the 
Firemen's  Association  of  Pittsburg. 

In  1837  we  find  on  record  his  name  on  the  list  of  the 
Volunteer  Fire  Department  of  the  City  of  Pittsburg  as 
President  and  Chief  Engineer. 

In  1838  John  McFaden  and  Company,  Canal  Basin, 
Penn  Street,  have  control  of  the  Reliance  Portable  Boat 
Line,  transporting  goods  from  Philadelphia  to  Pittsburg 
in  three  or  four  days'  less  time  than  any  other  route  via 
Canal  and  Portage  and  Columbia  Railroad. 

John  McFaden  was  a  stanch  supporter  of  Trinity 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  was  a  member  of  the  "Old 


150  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

Round"  Church  in  the  year  1815,  and  a  Vestryman  and 
Treasurer  of  Trinity  Episcopal  Church  for  thirty  years. 
There  is  a  memorial  window  for  him  in  Trinity  Church 
at  the  present  time. 

It  was  under  Mr.  McFaden,  and  in  the  office  of  the 
Reliance  Sectional  Boat  Line  Company,  that  those  two 
eminent  citizens  of  Pittsburg,  William  Thaw  and  Felix 
Brunot,  acquired  their  early  business  experience. 

After  Mr.  McFaden  had  entered  into  rest,  a  gentle- 
man said  to  Mrs.  MacHenry,  Mr.  McFaden 's  daughter, 
"Mary,  your  father  was  a  true  man;  and  the  simple  word 
of  John  McFaden  was  better  than  many  a  man's  bond." 

Another  said  of  him:  "He  was  one  of  God's  noblemen." 

To  Mr.  and  Mrs.  McFaden  were  born  seven  children: 
1.  John  D.,  2.  Mary  D.,  3.  Sarah  C,  4.  James  K., 
5.  Catherine  G.,  6.  Eliza  M.,  7.  Joanna  A. 

Sarah  C,  James  Kennedy,  Eliza  McGunnegle,  and 
Joanna  A.  all  died  in  childhood. 

1.  John  Davis  McFaden  married  Jennie  E.  Nesbit, 
of  Pittsburg,  February  13,  1870.  He  died  February  2, 
1872,  aged  forty  years.  His  wife,  Jennie,  died  in  the 
following  year,  1873. 

2.  Mary  Davis  McFaden  was  born  in  Pittsburg 
December  13,  1833.  She  was  educated  in  the  best  pri- 
vate schools  of  Pittsburg  and  Allegheny.  She  says  that 
she  is  indebted  to  her  father  for  a  thorough  mental  train- 
ing in  her  school-days.  By  his  wise  and  careful  help 
she  was  enabled  to  study  understandingly,  and  the  excel- 
lent training  thus  received  smoothed  away  much  that 
otherwise  would  have  been  puzzling  and  repulsive,  even 
in  later  years. 

She  was  married  by  the  Rev.  S.  G.  Fuller,  rector  of 
St.  Peter's  Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  Pittsburg,  to 


IV.    JOHN  151 

Charles  Walter  MacHenry,  of  Pittsburg,  February 
7,  1867.  Captain  MacHenry  was  born  in  Pittsburg 
December  28,  1840.  He  was  fitted  for  college  at  the 
Sewickly  Academy,  and  at  the  Academy  in  Lawrence- 
ville,  N.  J.,  and  was  graduated  with  high  honors  from 
Washington  and  Jefferson  College.  He  then  read  law, 
first,  with  Edwin  M.  Stanton,  Lincoln's  great  War  Sec- 
retary, and  afterward  with  Col.  Edward  Simpson,  both 
of  Pittsburg.  ^\Tien  the  Civil  War  broke  out,  Mr.  Mac- 
Henry volunteered,  and  was  enrolled  with  the  Duquesne 
Greys,  of  Pittsburg.  He  afterward  became  captain  of 
Company  G,  63d  Regiment,  Pennsylvania  Volunteers, 
Infantry  Gen.  Alexander  Hayes  commanding.  This 
regiment  was  in  Gen.  Phil  Kearney's  Division  of  the 
Army  of  the  Potomac.  It  was  in  that  ill-fated  part  of 
the  army  that  was  kept  in  the  swamps  of  the  Chicka- 
hominy,  until  it  was  decimated  by  exposure  and  disease. 
It  was  here  that  Captain  MacHenry  contracted  malaria 
to  such  a  degree  that  he  never  recovered  from  the  effects 
of  it.  It  was  the  cause  of  his  untimely  death  in  1874, 
in  the  thirty-fourth  year  of  his  age.  Having  been 
wounded  in  the  second  battle  of  Bull  Run,  he  was  dis- 
charged for  disability.  In  1863  he  became  deputy  pro- 
vost marshal  of  Pittsburg,  and  continued  to  hold  that 
office  until  the  close  of  the  war. 

Captain  MacHenry  was  a  classical  scholar,  and  a 
legal  light,  as  well  as  a  brave  and  efficient  soldier.  He 
excelled  as  a  public  lecturer.  He  was  moreover  a  Chris- 
tian gentleman,  and  a  member  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church.  Take  him  all  in  all,  he  was  a  man  of  whom 
his  widow  and  children  may  be  justly  proud,  and  the 
whole  Davis  connection  may  properly  revere  his  memory. 
He  sleeps  in  the  beautiful  cemetery  of  "Oak  Hill,"  Janes- 
ville.  Wis.,  his  resting-place  being  marked  by  a  gray 
marble  cross,  bearing  the  inscription,  "The  Ashes  of  a 
Soldier." 


152  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

The  home  of  Captain  and  Mrs.  MacHenry  was  bright- 
ened and  enlivened  by  the  advent  of  three  daughters: 
1.  LoRENA,  2.  Lilian  M.,  3.  Charlesetta  W. 

1.  LoRENA  MacHenry  was  born  in  Pittsburg  April  5, 
1868,  and  was  baptized  in  St.  Peter's  Church,  by  the 
Rev.  Wm.  Egar,  with  water  brought  from  the  River 
Jordan,  by  the  late  Colonel  Foster,  of  Pittsburg.  Her 
education  was  received  in  the  public  schools  of  Janes- 
ville,  Wis.,  and  the  Church  School,  known  as  Kemper 
Hall,  at  Kenosha,  Wis. 

2.  Lilian  McFaden  MacHenry  was  born  in  Janes- 
ville,  Wis.,  and  baptized  by  the  Rev.  George  Wallace, 
in  Trinity  Church  of  that  city.  She  was  educated  in 
the  public  schools  of  Janes ville,  and  at  Kemper  Hall, 
Kenosha.  She  was  married  in  Chicago,  December  29, 
1898,  to  Mr.  Wm.  J.  Morrison,  of  Fort  Madison,  Iowa. 
On  January  10,  1903,  this  sweet  young  woman  was  called 
away  from  earthly  scenes  by  One,  in  whose  presence  is 
"fulness  of  joy,  and  at  whose  right  hand  are  pleasures 
for  evermore." 

3.  Charlesetta  Wallace  MacHenry  wag  born  in 
Janesville,  and  baptized  in  Trinity  Church,  by  the  rector, 
Mr.  Wallace.  She  was  educated,  as  her  sisters  had  been, 
in  the  schools  of  Janesville,  and  at  Kemper  Hall.  On 
June  3,  1902,  she  was  married  to  Alfred  Wellman 
Schaefer,  in  Memphis,  Tenn.,  by  Dr.  F.  L.  Davenport, 
rector  of  Trinity  Church,  in  that  city.  Their  home  is 
in  Baltimore,  Md.  Mr.  Schaefer  was  at  the  time  of 
their  marriage,  and  still  is,  a  trusted  traveler  for  the 
Albert  Dickinson  Seed  Company.  He  is  a  communicant 
in  Emmanuel  Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  of  Baltimore, 
and  is  a  courteous,  educated  gentleman,  honored  by  all 
who  know  him. 

In  1884  Mrs.  MacHenry  moved  to  Kenosha,  Wis.,  to 
be  near  Kemper  Hall,  where  her  daughters  were  educated. 
In  1893  she  went  to  Pittsburg.     But  in  1899  she  returned 


» 


I 


MRS.    HENRY    JOHN    BAILEY 


IV.  JOHN  153 

to  the  West,  and  to  Fort  Madison,  Iowa,  to  be  near  her 
daughter  Lilian.  She  remained  there,  to  be  near  the 
grave  of  her  dearly  loved  daughter.  "I  stay,"  she  writes, 
"for  a  mound  in  the  cemetery  is  dearer  to  me  than  I 
can  tell,  and  she  does  not  seem  so  far  away,  when  I  have 
the  privilege  of  making  her  resting-place  beautiful." 

3.  Catherine  Graydon,  fifth  child  and  third  daugh- 
ter of  John  and  Eliza  Davis  McFaden,  was  born  in  Pitts- 
burg, Pa.,  April  30,  1838.  She  attended  the  public 
schools  and  the  Pittsburgh  Female  College,  also  Dr. 
Varian's  Seminary  and  Miss  Tallent's  Private  School  of 
Meadville,  Pa. 

Catherine  Graydon  McFaden  was  married  to  Henry 
John  Bailey  on  August  15,  1865,  in  St.  Peter's  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church  of  Pittsburg.  Her  two  eldest  daugh- 
ters were  also  married  in  this  church.  This  happy  union 
was  blessed  with  nine  children:  1.  Alice  Noble,  2.  Eliza 
McFaden,  3.  George  Hobart,  4.  Katie  Kerfoot, 
5.  ILa-Rry  Chantler,  6.  John  Parke,  7.  Gertrude 
Lilian,  8.  Edith  Greye,  9.  Howard  Percy.  Of  these, 
John  Parke  and  Howard  Percy  died  in  infancy.  The 
first  lived  one  year  and  nine  months;  the  second  only  one 
month.  At  the  present  time  (1910)  twenty-two  boys 
and  girls  call  her  grandmother. 

IVIrs.  Bailey,  since  her  children  have  grown  up  and 
settled  in  homes  of  their  own,  has  traveled  extensively, 
and  taken  an  active  interest  in  charitable  and  philan- 
thropic work.  She  has  visited  Mexico,  California,  Ore- 
gon, Yellowstone  Park,  and  other  parts  of  the  United 
States,  as  well  as  Russia,  Japan,  Holland,  Belgium, 
Switzerland,  Iceland,  Norway,  Sweden,  England,  Ire- 
land, Scotland,  Wales,  France,  Italy,  Eg^npt,  and  the 
Holy  Land.  WTiile  in  the  Holy  Land  IVIrs.  Bailey  pro- 
cured some  water  from  the  River  Jordan  which  was 
used   at   the  baptism   of   her   grandson,   Franklin   Car- 


154  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

lisle  Hodkinson,  Jr.,  in  Calvary  Episcopal  Church,  Pitts- 
burg. Alice  Noble  Bailey,  her  eldest  child,  was  also 
baptized,  by  Dr.  Snively,  with  water  from  the  Jordan 
River  in  the  old  St.  Andrew's  Episcopal  Church,  formerly 
on  Hand  now  Ninth  Street,  Pittsburg. 

Mrs.  Bailey  is  a  member  of  the  Daughters  of  the 
American  Revolution,  almost  from  its  organization;  of 
the  United  States  Daughters  of  1812;  the  Colonial  Dames, 
and  the  Daughters  of  American  Pioneers.  Of  the  latter 
society,  she  has  been  the  Regent  since  the  organization 
six  years  ago.  Twice  she  has  been  President  of  the 
Travelers'  Club,  and  has  also  been  President  of  the 
Pittsburgh  Sorosis. 

Mrs.  Bailey  has  taken  an  active  part  in  civic  work, 
and  done  much  for  Vacation  School  Playgrounds,  the  Soho 
Public  Baths,  and  the  Home  for  Babies,  under  the 
auspices  of  the  Daughters  of  American  Pioneers.  In  the 
summer  of  1908  Mrs.  Bailey  had  her  photograph  taken 
with  her  children  and  grandchildren,  making  a  group  of 
thirty-one  persons.  A  copy  of  the  photograph  is  shown 
in  this  book.     {See  Key.) 

Taken  from  Pennsylvania  Historical  and  Biograph- 
ical, Lambing,  Historian,  1904 
Vol.  2,  Page  199 

Henry  John  Bailey,  one  of  Pittsburg's  best  known 
and  most  successful  business  men,  who  died  at  his  home, 
Centerview,  corner  Center  and  Aiken  avenues,  Wednes- 
day, December  9,  1903,  was  a  native  of  Pittsburg,  born 
May  30,  1839.  He  was  a  son  of  George  and  Sarah 
Chantler  Bailey.  Mr.  Bailey  was  educated  in  the  old 
South  School  on  Ross  Street,  and  when  a  mere  boy  went 
into  the  plumbing  business  with  his  father. 

At  the  age  of  eighteen  he  succeeded  his  father  in  the 
business,  and  a  few  years  afterward  took  his  brother-in- 


HENRY    JOHN    BAILEY 


IV.  JOHN  155 

law,  John  Farrell,  into  partnership  under  the  name  of 
Bailey,  Farrell  &  Co.  In  1865  the  firm  gave  up  the 
plumbing  business,  and  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of 
lead  pipe,  sheet  lead,  and  shot,  as  well  as  brass  and  iron- 
work for  plumbers  and  gas-fitters,  and  mechanical  and 
engine-builders  supplies.  In  this  line  of  industry  the 
Bailey-Farrell  Manufacturing  Company,  incorporated  in 
1891,  has  become  the  largest  and  best  known  of  its  kind 
west  of  the  Alleghany  Mountains.  In  April,  1903,  Mr. 
Bailey  retired  from  active  business,  but  the  control  of 
the  company  which  he  organized  is  still  held  by  his 
children.  Mr.  Bailey  was  a  man  of  strong  personality 
and  intellect.  His  habit  of  close  application  and  study 
upon  any  subject  in  which  he  became  interested  caused 
him  to  master  quickly  its  every  detail.  His  ability  to 
acquire  accurate  knowledge  was  one  of  his  chief  charac- 
teristics. Among  his  earliest  achievements  was  the  de- 
velopment of  machinery  for  working  lead  into  sheet, 
pipe,  arid  shot.  His  practical  knowledge,  united  with 
his  excutive  ability,  placed  his  company  in  the  highest 
rank.  Mr.  Bailey  was  an  indefatigable  reader  and 
worker,  his  large  library  containing  many  scientific  works. 
He  was  the  author  of  several  treatises  on  subjects  of 
interest  to  the  plumbing  trade,  writing  from  a  practical 
standpoint.  He  was  very  methodical  and  exact  in  all 
his  business  transactions,  and  his  honesty  and  integrity 
were  never  questioned.  Cordial  and  friendly  in  his  dis- 
position, he  was  a  good  companion  and  sincere  friend. 
He  was  a  lover  of  horses,  a  keen  sportsman,  and  a  good 
shot,  and  made  several  trips  to  the  far  West  for  the 
purpose  of  hunting  and  recreation.  Mr.  Bailey  gave 
considerable  money  to  charitable  purposes,  much  of 
which  was  done  in  a  quiet  way.  Mr.  Bailey  owned  con- 
siderable real  estate  in  the  city  of  Pittsburg,  the  great 
bulk  of  which  is  improved  with  a  good  class  of  buildings. 
One  of  the  principal  pieces  of  his  down-town  holdings  is 


156  THE   DAVIS    FAMILY 

the  old  homestead  on  Fourth  Avenue,  directly  across  from 
the  post-office  and  adjoining  the  Columbia  National  Bank 
building,  where  three  of  his  children  were  born.  This  is 
to-day  one  of  the  most  valuable  properties  in  the  city  of 
Pittsburg.  He  took  a  lively  interest  in  all  the  city 
improvements,  and  had  a  deep  and  lasting  faith  in  the 
city's  greatness,  lending  his  time,  money,  and  influence 
to  anything  looking  toward  its  growth. 

He  was  a  member  of  the  Baptist  Church,  his  wife  and 
children  being  members  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church.  He  belonged  to  the  Masonic  order,  and  in 
politics  was  a  Republican.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
Sportsmen's  Association  of  Western  Pennsylvania,  and 
of  the  Pittsburgh  Automobile  Club. 

1.  Alice  Noble  Bailey,  born  on  the  twelfth  of  June, 
1866,  was  married  to  Mr.  Robert  Garland  on  April  12, 
1888.  Two  children  were  born:  1.  Alice  Gertrude, 
born  on  February  14,  1889,  and  2.  Robert,  born  on 
November  21,  1897.     He  died  on  October  16,  1901. 

Mr.  Robert  Garland  was  born  in  Charlemont,  Ire- 
land, on  September  27,  1862.  His  father,  Robert  Gar- 
land, married  Eliza  Jane  Atwell,  the  daughter  of  John 
Atwell  and  Maria  Oliver.  His  grandfather,  Robert  Gar- 
land, married  Mary  Ann  McCann.  His  great-grandfather, 
George  Garland,  went  from  Preston,  England,  to  Armagh, 
Ireland,  about  the  year  1754.  He  married  a  daughter  of 
the  Green  Isle.  Robert's  father  was  a  sergeant-major 
in  the  Crimean  War,  and  received  two  or  three  medals 
for  bravery.  His  son  is  now  wearing  a  seal  ring  which 
was  given  to  his  father  by  Colonel  Burgess,  whose  life 
he  saved  during  the  war. 

Mr.  Robert  Garland  is  president  of  the  Garland  Nut 
and  Rivet  Company,  and  a  director  of  the  Third  National 
Bank  of  Pittsburg.  He  is  connected  also  with  several 
other  organizations.  This  family  is  in  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church. 


IV.  JOHN  157 

2.  Eliza  McFaden  Bailey,  born  on  the  first  of  Janu- 
ary, 1868,  was  married  on  December  1,  1892,  to  Mr. 
John  Whyte  Garland,  a  brother  of  Mr.  Robert  Garland. 
Mr.  John  W.  Garland  was  born  on  May  11,  1867.  To 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  John  Garland  have  been  born  five  children : 

1.  Robert  Mervyn,  born  on  December  8,  1893,  2.  Henry 
Bailey,  born  on  August  4,  1895,  3.  Wallace  Graydon, 
born  on  March  27,  1901,  4.  Edith  Bailey,  born  on  Jan- 
uary 24,  1903,  and  5.  Virginia  Louise,  born  on  Decem- 
ber 12,  1905. 

Mr.  John  W.  Garland  is  President  of  the  Safety- 
Armorite  Conduit  Company,  and  a  director  of  the  First 
National  Bank  of  Pittsburg.  This  family  also  belongs 
to  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 

3.  George  Hobart  Bailey,  born  on  November  30, 
1869,  married  Mary  Isabel  Atwell  on  the  twenty -fifth 
of  January,  1893.  Miss  Atwell  is  the  daughter  of  James 
Atwell  and  Isabel  Murray  Atwell.  They  have  three 
children:  1.  Henry  John,  born  on  May  3,  1894,  2.  James 
Atwell,  born  on  August  4, 1899;  and  3.  Dorothy  Isabel, 
born  on  January  19,  1904. 

Mr.  Bailey  is  President  of  the  Bailey-Farrell  Manu- 
facturing Company.  This  family  is  also  in  the  Episcopal 
Church. 

4.  Katie  Kerfoot  Bailey,  born  on  November  13, 
1872,  was  married  on  October  14,  1897,  to  Mr.  Frank- 
lin Carlisle  Hodkinson.  Mr.  Hodkinson,  the  son  of 
Thomas  Hodkinson  and  Mary  E.  Ward,  was  born  on 
January  1,  1873. 

To  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hodkinson  have  been  born  five  chil- 
dren: 1.  Catherine  Bailey,  born  on  March  28,  1900, 

2.  Eleanor  Louise,  born  on  June  26,  1902,  3.  Lois 
Emma,  born  on  March  23,  1904,  died  on  January  31, 
1905,  4.  Emma  Bihler,  born  on  May  2,  1905,  and  5. 
Franklin  Carlisle,  Jr.,  born  October  17,  1909. 

Mr.   Hodkinson   is   Secretary   of  the   Safety-Armorite 


158  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

Conduit   Company.     The   family  is   in   the   Protestant 
Episcopal  Church. 

5.  Harry  Chantler  Bailey,  born  on  November  24, 
1874,  married  Miss  Mary  Alice  Craft  on  the  sixteenth 
of  June,  1897.  Miss  Craft  is  the  daughter  of  Charles  C. 
Craft  and  Mary  Mallory  Craft.  To  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bailey 
was  born  a  son  named  Harry  Chantler  Bailey,  on 
November  4,  1898.  Mr.  Bailey's  course  on  earth  was  a 
brief  one.      He  died  on  the  twenty-first  of  October,  1899. 

He  was  a  member  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church, 
of  which  church  Mrs.  Bailey  and  her  son  are  also  members. 

6.  Gertrude  Lillian  Bailey,  born  on  the  tenth  of 
May,  1880,  was  married  on  the  second  of  April,  1902,  to 
Mr.  Robert  Willaim  Tener.  Mr.  Tener  is  the  son  of 
Hampden  E.  Tener  and  Eliza  Frost,  and  was  born  in 
Ireland  on  March  19,  1867.  He  is  auditor  of  the  United 
Engineering  and  Foundry  Company  of  Pittsburg. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Tener  have  four  children:  1.  Graydon 
Bailey,  born  on  August  5,  1903,  2.  Robert  William, 
born  on  March  20,  1906,  and  Gertrude  Catherine  and 
Hampden  Frost,  twins,  born  on  August  30,  1907.  This 
family  is  also  in  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 

7.  Edith  Greye  Bailey,  born  on  the  fourth  of  March, 
1882,  was  married  on  January  10,  1905,  to  Mr.  Robert 
Ransom  Gordon.  He  is  treasurer  of  the  Pressed  Radi- 
ator Company  of  Pittsburg.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Gordon 
have  two  children:  1.  Bailey,  born  on  October  31,  1905, 
and  2.  Catherine  Graydon  McFaden,  born  on  January 
18,  1907.  Mrs.  Gordon  is  a  member  of  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church,  while  Mr.  Gordon,  as  his  fine  old 
Scotch  name  would  indicate,  is  a  member  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church. 

C.  William  Davis,  third  child  and  second  son  of 
John  Davis  and  Mary  McGunnegle,  married  Anna 
Stewart    Horner,  a  sister    of    Mr.  John    Horner,  of 


KEY 

No.l.  Mrs.  Henry  John  Bailey. 

2.  Mrs.  Robert  Garland  (Alice  Noble  Bailey). 

3.  Robert  Garland. 

4.  Alice  Gertrude  Garland. 

5.  Mrs.  John  Whyte  Garland  (Eliza  McFaden  Bailey). 

6.  John  Whyte  Garland. 

7.  Robert  Mervyn  Garland. 

8.  Henry  Bailey  Garland. 

9.  Wallace  Graydon  Garland. 

10.  Edith  Bailey  Garland. 

11.  Virginia  Louise  Garland. 

12.  George  Hobart  Bailey. 

13.  Mrs.  George  Hobart  Bailey  (Mary  Isabel  Atwell). 

14.  Henry  John  Bailey. 

15.  James  Atwell  Bailey. 

16.  Dorothy  Isabel  Bailey. 

17.  Mrs.  Franklin  Carlisle  Hodkinson  (Katie  Kerfoot  Bailey). 

18.  Franklin  Carlisle  Hodkinson. 

19.  Catherine  Bailey  Hodkinson. 

20.  Eleanor  Louise  Hodkinson. 

21.  Emma  Bihler  Hodkinson. 

22.  Mrs.  Robert  William  Tener  (Gertrude  Lillian  Bailey). 

23.  Robert  William  Tener. 

24.  Graydon  Bailey  Tener. 

25.  Robert  William  Tener,  Jr. 

26.  Hampden  Frost  Tener. 

27.  Gertrude  Catherine  Tener. 

28.  Mrs.  Robert  Ransom  Gordon  (Edith  Greye  Bailey). 

29.  Robert  Ransom  Gordon. 

30.  Bailey  Gordon. 

31.  Catherine  Graydon  McFaden  Gordon. 


1 


IV.  JOHN  159 

Wilkinsburg.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  lived  in  that  place. 
They  had  one  child,  John  Means  Davis,  a  beautiful 
boy,  of  a  singularly  sweet  disposition,  who  died,  after  a 
brief  illness,  at  the  early  age  of  five  years.  I  am  truly 
sorry  that  I  failed  to  obtain  further  data  concerning  this 
member  of  John  Davis's  family,  and  his  loved  ones. 

D.  Kennedy  Davis,  fourth  child  and  third  son  of 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  John  Davis,  was  born  in  Meadville,  Decem- 
ber 8,  1804,  and  died  August  19,  1881.  He  obtained  as 
good  an  education  as  could  be  had  in  Meadville  at  that 
early  day.  He  married  Margaret  Hurst,  a  daughter 
of  William  Hurst,  a  prominent  citizen  of  Meadville.  In 
the  year  1828  or  1829  he  established  a  tannery  on  the 
west  side  of  Water  Street,  and  continued  to  operate  it 
until  the  year  1859.  In  1852  he  was  one  of  the  incor- 
porators of  Greendale  Cemetery. 

Inheriting  the  patriotic  spirit  of  his  ancestors,  Mr. 
Davis  enlisted  during  the  Civil  War,  at  the  same  time 
with  his  son  Frederick,  for  the  defense  of  Pennsylvania. 
Their  company  was  stationed  for  some  time  at  Camp 
Howe,  Pittsburg.  He  was  elected,  some  years  later, 
Associate  Judge  of  the  Courts  of  Crawford  County.  He 
was  a  man  of  strict  integrity  and  strong  convictions. 
He  was  a  public-spirited  and  useful  citizen.  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Kennedy  Davis  and  all  their  children  were  mem- 
bers of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 

To  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Kennedy  Davis  were  born  six  chil- 
dren: 1.  IVIary  E.,  2.  George  K.,  3.  Henry  H.,  4.  Fred- 
erick H.,  5.  Augustine,  6.  Frances  I.  Mary,  George, 
and  Augustine  died  young. 

1.  Henry  Hurst  Davis  was  educated  at  Allegheny 
College,  served  at  First  Lieutenant  during  the  Civil  War, 
and  is  now  engaged  in  business  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Pittsburg. 


160  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

2.  Frederick  Hurst  Davis  was  educated  at  Alle- 
gheny College,  studied  law,  was  admitted  to  practise  in 
the  Courts  of  Crawford  County,  and  resides  in  Mead- 
ville.  He  is  a  man  of  fine  literary  taste,  and  spends  much 
of  his  time  in  reading  and  study.  He  also  volunteered  at 
the  breaking  out  of  the  Civil  War,  and  was  accepted  as 
one  of  the  defenders  of  the  Union. 

3.  Frances  Isabel  Davis,  the  youngest  of  the  family 
of  Judge  Kennedy  Davis,  passed  into  eternal  felicity  on 
March  11,  1907.  She  was  a  woman  of  broad  culture, 
and  possessed  marked  executive  ability,  although  an 
invalid  for  many  years.  Her  bright  mind  and  enter- 
taining manner,  combined  with  the  Christian  faitlj  and 
love  which  shone  through  the  weariness  and  .pain  of  her 
affliction,  won  and  held  admiring  friends,  not  only  in 
the  vicinity,  but  from  many  cities  where  lives  had  been 
touched  by  the  influence  of  her  forceful  personality. 
Prominent  in  church  and  social  circles,  she  had  served 
in  various  offices,  such  as  Secretary  of  the  Woman's 
Board  of  Missions,  the  Church  Charity  Guild,  and  the 
Woman's  Auxiliary.  Miss  Fanny  Davis  possessed  liter- 
ary abilities  far  above  the  ordinary.  Her  interest  in  the 
culture  of  her  sex  led  her  to  organize  the  Woman's  Club 
of  Meadville,  in  which  she  served  faithfully  and  effi- 
ciently as  first  president. 

Of  Colonial  and  Revolutionary  ancestry  on  both  the 
Davis  and  the  Hurst  side  of  her  house,  it  was  fitting  that 
to  her  should  belong  the  honor  of  being  the  founder  and 
first  Regent  of  the  Crawford  County  Chapter  of  the 
D.  A.  R.  Through  her  efforts  all  the  preliminary  work 
was  done  with  marked  success,  and  many  genealogical 
records  were  proven  after  much  careful  research.  In 
grateful  appreciation  of  this  willing  service,  two  of  the 
most  prominent  members  of  the  Crawford  County  Chap- 
ter presented  to  the  Regent  the  insignia  of  the  society 


IV.  JOHN  161 

in  a  handsome  jewel-box;  and,  in  offering  this  beautiful 
tribute,  voiced  unbounded  appreciation  of  her  many  and 
unusually  high  qualities  of  mind  and  heart. 

As  a  member  of  the  Society  of  Colonial  Dames  of 
Pennsj'lvania,  her  interest  in  and  enthusiasm  for  the 
patriotic  work  of  her  sister  members  in  the  many  organ- 
izations now  banded  together  widened  and  increased  from 
day  to  day.  Thus  many  otherwise  weary  hours  w^ere 
filled  with  most  pleasurable  satisfaction  and  enjoyment, 
derived  from  the  thought  that  even  her  shut-in  life  of 
suffering  might  share  in  some  small  degree  in  the  noble 
work  accomplished  by  those  patriotic  societies. 

E.  jVL\.ry  Means  Davis,  fourth  in  descent  from  James, 
the  founder  of  the  family  in  America,  and  the  second 
daughter  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  John  Davis,  was  born  in  Mead- 
ville  December  12,  1806.  After  enjoying  excellent 
advantages  in  a  Christian  home,  and  in  the  schools  of 
Meadville,  she  was  married  to  John  Horner,  Esq.,  of 
Wilkinsburg,  Pa.,  June  7,  1832.  The  marriage  took  place 
in  Christ's  Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  at  Meadville, 
Rev.  John  James  being  the  officiating  minister.  Her 
home  was  thereafter  at  Wilkinsburg.  Brought  up  in  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  she  now  became,  with  her 
husband,  a  member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church.  "Of  a 
retiring  disposition,  she  was  nevertheless  exceedingly 
active  and  zealous  in  missionary  and  charitable  work, 
and  endeared  herself  to  a  large  circle  of  friends  who 
loved  her  because  of  what  she  w^as,  a  refined,  intelligent, 
and  earnest  Christian  woman." 

Descended  from  those  who  took  part  in  the  Colonial 
and  Revolutionary  wars,  and  the  mother  of  three  vet- 
erans of  the  War  to  preserve  the  Union,  Mrs.  Horner  was 
truly  patriotic  and  loyal  in  all  her  feelings,  realizing  at  the 
same  time  that  patriotism  should  be  active  in  the  present, 
as  well  as  retrospective  of  the  past.     While  honoring  in 


162  THE   DAVIS    FAMILY 

our  hearts  the  brave  men  who  purchased  our  freedom, 
we  should  exhibit  a  present-day  patriotism,  and  study  to 
be  on  the  right  side  of  every  question  that  comes  up. 

Among  Mrs.  Horner's  memories  of  her  early  life  in 
Pittsburg  was  that  of  greeting  that  great  friend  of  Amer- 
ica, General  Lafayette,  when  he  visited  the  United  States, 
as  the  "Nation's  Guest,"  in  1824-25,  and  was  given  a 
reception  at  Pittsburg. 

Another  memory  that  gave  her  pleasure  to  mention 
was  that  her  mother  had  been  one  of  a  number  of  Pitts- 
burg patriotic  women  who  pledged  themselves  not  to 
wear  any  article  manufactured  in  England,  until  peace 
should  be  declared. 

Mrs.  Horner,  after  a  lingering  illness,  attended  with 
great  suffering,  borne  with  the  sweetest  patience  and 
submission,  entered  into  eternal  joy  February  9,  1887. 
Throughout  life  she  had  exemplified  the  rarest  type  of 
Christian  gentleness  and  refinement.  Hers  was  pre- 
eminently a  beautiful  old  age.  Though  well  advanced 
in  years,  she  was  not  bent  with  age.  She  was  as  erect 
as  in  her  earlier  years. 

Mrs.  Horner  was  not  exempt  from  trials  and  sorrows, 
losing,  as  she  did,  so  many  of  the  friends  who  were  very 
dear  to  her.  Especially  was  the  death  of  her  three  sons, 
who  may  be  said  to  have  sacrificed  their  lives  in  their 
patriotic  devotion  to  the  Union  of  the  states,  a  sore  and 
bitter  trial  to  her  loving  heart.  But  it  was  in  meeting 
these  trials,  and  when  she  herself  came  to  go  down  into 
"the  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death,"  that  her  sweet  and 
beautiful  spirit  of  submission  —  of  unmurmuring  and 
cheerful  resignation  to  the  divine  will  —  was  exhibited, 
and  shed  its  blessed  influence  upon  all  around  her. 

Mr.  John  Horner  was  born  at  Wilkinsburg,  Pa., 
May  26,  1799.  He  was  descended,  on  his  father's  side, 
from  Huguenot  ancestors,  who  fled  from  France  to  Scot- 
land, and  from  thence  to  the  north  of  Ireland.     He  was 


IV.  JOHN  163 

descended  also  from  the  Dunnings  and  McNairs,  who, 
in  the  Colonial  times,  and  in  the  Revolutionary  struggle, 
proved  themselves  noble  representatives  of  the  cause  of 
justice  and  liberty.  He  was  therefore  of  a  family  well 
represented  in  the  conflict  for  civil  and  religious  liberty 
both  in  the  Old  World  and  in  the  New.  He  was  gradu- 
ated from  Jefferson  College,  at  Canonsburg,  Pa.,  in 
1822.  He  then  read  law,  but,  for  family  reasons,  on 
the  death  of  his  father  he  engaged  in  the  drug  business 
in  Pittsburg. 

He  was  elected  Justice  of  the  Peace,  and  later  Clerk 
of  the  Courts  of  Allegheny  County  for  successive  terms. 
During  the  War  of  the  States  he  was  actively  interested 
in  the  work  of  the  Christian  Commission.  Having  sent 
three  sons  into  the  service  of  his  country,  his  fatherly 
affection  went  out  to  all  who  wore  the  blue. 

He  was  an  active  and  useful  member  of  the  Presbyte- 
rian Church.  From  earliest  childhood  he  gave  evidence 
of  the  many  good  qualities  which  distinguished  him  in 
after  life.  Truth,  generosity,  and  the  keenest  sense  of 
honor  were  his  attributes  in  an  eminent  degree.  He 
urged  the  erection  of  school  and  church  buildings,  and 
was  noted  for  his  high  regard  for  everything  tending  to 
uplift  and  save  his  fellow  men.  The  first  public  school 
in  Wilkinsburg  was  held  in  his  father's  home,  and  the 
first  public  schoolhouse  erected  in  Wilkinsburg  was  named 
the  John  Horner  School. 

Mr.  Horner  left  these  earthly  scenes  March  19,  1869. 
He  left  to  his  children  the  precious  legacy  of  an  unsullied 
name,  and  the  record  of  a  pure  and  sterling  character 
exhibited  in  the  discharge  of  all  his  public  duties. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Horner  had  a  family  of  eight  children, 
as  follows:  1.  James,  2.  John  D.,  3.  Mary  G.,  4.  Matilda 
G.,  5.  Eleanor  M.,  6.  Eliza  M.,  7.  George  K.,  8.  Wil- 
liam JI. 


164  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

1.  James  Horner,  the  eldest  of  the  family,  was  born 
April  1,  1833.  He  was  educated  at  Allegheny  College, 
Meadville,  and,  March  2,  1858,  married  Margaret  S. 
McFarland,  daughter  of  John  McFarland,  a  merchant 
of  Meadville.  Miss  McFarland  was  a  graduate  of  the 
Moravian  Seminary  at  Bethlehem,  Pa.  The  young 
couple  lived  for  a  time  in  Minnesota,  then  removed  to 
Wilkinsburg,  Pa.  Here  Mr.  Horner  spent  the  remainder  of 
his  life;  and  here  Mrs.  Horner,  with  her  children,  is  still 
living.  Mr.  Horner  was  an  estimable  and  honored  citizen. 
He  was  elected  Burgess  of  the  town  for  a  term  of  three 
years.  He  was  a  member  of  the  United  Presbyterian 
Church.     His  death  occurred  January  8,    1908. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  James  Horner  had  three  children:  1.  John 
M.,  2.  Georgia  D.,  3.  Frank. 

(a)  Mr.  John  McFarland  Horner,  born  January  11, 
1859,  is  in  business  in  Pittsburg. 

(b)  Miss  Georgia  Davis  Horner,  born  August  2, 1860, 
is  a  young  woman  of  fine  executive  ability.  She  is 
engaged  in  the  insurance  and  real  estate  business. 

(c)  Frank  Horner  died  young. 

2.  John  Davis  Horner  was  born  July  11,  1834.  He 
attended  private  schools  in  Wilkinsburg,  and  the  Acad- 
emy at  East  Liberty,  going  back  and  forth  each  day  in 
stage-coach  or  omnibus.  In  1861,  when  the  call  to  arms 
came  from  President  Lincoln,  Davis  Horner  was  among 
the  first  to  respond.  He  enlisted  in  Company  G,  15th 
Pennsylvania  Cavalry,  known  as  the  "Anderson  Cavalry," 
under  command  of  Gen.  George  H.  Thomas,  of  the  Army 
of  the  Cumberland,  and  continued  in  that  company  until 
the  close  of  the  war.  He  was  on  many  a  hard-fought 
battle-field,  and  displayed  great  bravery,  especially  in  the 
battles  of  Chattanooga  and  Chickamauga.  After  the 
war  he  was  in  the  United  States  custom-house  at  Pitts- 
burg  for  several  years.     He  took   great   interest  in  the 


IV.  JOHN  165 

G.  A.  R.,  and  was  also  a  charter  member  of  the  Penn- 
sylvania Society  of  the  S.  A.  R.  He  loved  his  country's 
flag,  and  showed  his  devotion  to  it,  by  having  a  liberty- 
pole  erected  near  his  residence,  from  which  the  starry 
banner  floated  in  the  breeze  on  all  anniversary  occasions. 
He  was  a  member  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  of 
Wilkinsburg,  having  united  with  it  in  early  life,  under 
the  ministry  of  the  Rev.  Samuel  M.  Henderson.  His 
death  occurred  February  18,  1898.  His  body  lies  in  the 
family  lot  in  Allegheny  Cemetery. 

3.  Mary  George  Horner,  the  oldest  daughter  of  the 
family,  was  born  September  19,  1836.  She  attended 
private  schools  in  Wilkinsburg,  and  the  Academy  at 
East  Liberty.  Her  rich  affection,  sunny  cheerfulness, 
and  beautiful  unselfishness  filled  her  home  circle  with 
gracious  ministries  and  happiness.  She  passed  into  the 
other  life  —  in  her  case  one  of  eternal  joy  —  December 
2,  1874. 

4.  Matilda  Graham  Horner  was  born  November  2, 
1838.  She  was  educated,  like  her  sister  and  older  broth- 
ers, in  private  schools  and  at  the  East  Liberty  Academy. 
She  is  a  charter  member  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church 
of  Wilkinsburg.  With  her  sister,  IVIrs.  Gordon,  she  has 
a  beautiful  home,  with  a  fine  outlook,  at  Wilkinsburg. 
While  in  delicate  health,  she  has  been  in  full  sympathy 
with,  and,  as  far  as  possible,  in  cooperation  with  her  sister 
in  literary  and  benevolent  work. 

5.  Eleanor  McGunnegle  Horner  was  born  Decem- 
ber 4,  1840.  Her  educational  advantages  were  the  same 
that  her  older  brothers  and  sisters  enjoyed.  She  became 
the  wife  of  John  S.  McKelvy. 

Mr.  McKelvy  was  a  graduate  of  Allegheny  College, 
at  Meadville.     But  deciding  to  make  agriculture  his  life- 


166  THE   DAVIS    FAMILY 

work,  he  entered  and  was  graduated  from  the  State  Col- 
lege of  Pennsylvania. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  McKelvy  reside  on  their  farm  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Wilkinsburg.  To  them  have  been  born 
six  children:  1.  Rose  C,  2.  James  P.,  3.  IVIary  H.,  4. 
Elizabeth  H.,  5.  Eleanor  G.,  6.  John  S. 

1.  Rose  Cliff  McKelvy  was  born  December  3,  1864, 
and  finished  her  education  at  the  Pittsburg  Female  Col- 
lege. She  became  the  wife  of  Marshall  D.  McWhinney. 
Mr.  McWhinney  was  a  graduate  of  the  Western  Uni- 
versity, now  the  University  of  Pittsburg,  and  succeeded 
his  father,  Matthew  McWhinney,  in  the  wholesale  and 
retail  hardware  business,  conducted  under  the  name  of 
Matthew  McWhinney  &  Co.,  Wood  Street,  Pittsburg. 

(a)  Their  eldest  son,  Marshall  Dean  McWhinney, 
Jr.,  studied  mining  engineering  at  the  State  College  of 
Pennsylvania. 

(6)  Their  only  daughter,  Eleanor  McKelitt  Mc- 
Whinney, is  a  graduate  of  Hamilton  Institute,  at 
Washington,  D.  C. 

(c)  Ray  McWhinney,  their  second  son,  was  graduated 
from  the  Pittsburg  High  School,  and,  at  last  account,  was 
a  student  in  the  mining  department  of  the  Carnegie 
Technical  Institute  in  Pittsburg. 

2.  James  Percy  McKelvy  was  graduated  from  the 
High  School  of  Pittsburg  when  seventeen  years  of  age. 
He  then  entered  Columbia  College,  in  New  York  City, 
from  which  he  was  graduated.  He  then  took  a  position 
in  the  Laboratory  of  the  Carnegie  Steel  Works  in  Pitts- 
burg. Later  he  decided  to  study  medicine,  and  spent 
four  years  in  study  in  New  York  City,  later  engaging  in 
hospital  work  in  the  same  city.  He  is  now  successfully 
practising  his  profession  in  the  east  end  of  Pittsburg. 

3.  Mary  Horner  McKelvy  was  educated  in  the 
public  schools,  and  finished  at  the  Pittsburg  Female 
College.     She  became  the  wife  of  Louis  Adams  Reisige. 


IV.  JOHN  167 

Mr.  Reisige's  father,  a  Lutheran  minister,  came  to  Amer- 
ica with  his  wife,  from  Hambm-g,  Germany,  and  was 
located  in  Philadelphia.  The  son,  Louis,  was  graduated 
from  the  L'niversity  of  Pennsylvania,  and  became  an 
architect.  He  came  to  Pittsburg,  and  has  here  followed 
his  profession  with  success. 

4.  Elizabeth  Hagan  McKeltt  received  the  same 
education,  at  the  same  institutions,  with  her  older  sisters. 
She  was  married  to  Dr.  Saxderson.  Dr.  Sanderson's 
father  lives  in  Montreal,  Can.,  where  Dr.  Sanderson  was 
bom.  He  was  educated  at  one  of  the  colleges  in  Canada. 
He  studied  medicine  there,  and  when  graduated,  he  came 
to  Pittsburg,  and  located  in  the  east  end,  where  he  is 
successfully  practising  his  profession. 

5.  Eleanor  Gray  McKel^t  was  favored  with  the 
same  educational  advantages  that  her  sisters  had,  and 
was  married  to  H.  W.  McIxtosh.  He  was  a  graduate  of 
the  L'niversity  of  Pittsburg,  pursued  post-graduate 
studies  at  Yale,  and  studied  law  in  Pittsburg,  where  he 
is  engaged  in  the  practice  of  his  profession.  The  firm  is 
Langfitt  &  Mcintosh,  Attorneys. 

6.  John  Sample  McKEL^•T  prepared  for  college  in 
Pittsburg,  and  was  graduated  at  Yale  University.  He 
studied  law,  and  is  a  practising  attorney  in  Pittsburg. 

All  of  the  McKehy  family  are  members  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church. 

6.  Eliza  M.  Horner,  sixth  child  and  fourth  daughter 
of  John  and  ^lary  M.  Horner,  was  born  December  26, 
1843.  She  attended  the  Wilkinsburg  Academy  for  sev- 
eral years,  then  took  private  lessons  in  modern  lan- 
guages, and  in  vocal  and  instrumental  music.  Her  father, 
being  a  good  linguist,  instilled  into  Eliza  a  strong 
desire  for  the  same  accomplishment.  \Mien  she  was 
eight  years  of  age  she  began  the  study  of  Latin,  reciting 
to  her  father  in  the  evening,  after  being  at  school  all  day. 


168  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

She  was  not  much  older  when  she  began  the  study  of 
German  in  the  same  way.  Her  knowledge  of  French 
and  German  she  has  found  to  be  of  the  greatest  value 
and  convenience  to  her  in  her  frequent  travels  and  long 
residences  in  Europe. 

She  was  married  to  Franklin  M.  Gordon  October 
17,  1882.  Mr.  Gordon  was  born  in  Baltimore  December 
29,  1816.  He  was  descended  from  the  Gordons  of  the 
old  clan  country  in  Scotland.  He  went  to  Pittsburg  at 
jan  early  age,  and  engaged  in  business.  Later  he  became 
associated  with  the  Peoples'  National  Bank,  as  its  first 
cashier.  He  was  a  very  intelligent  and  public-spirited 
man,  a  Christian  gentleman,  active  in  the  philanthropic 
work  of  the  city.  During  the  war  between  the  states, 
he  was  closely  indentified  with  the  work  of  the  Christian 
Commission,  visiting  different  encampments  in  the  in- 
terest of  the  soldiers.  With  his  good  Scotch  name,  he 
was  of  course  a  Presbyterian,  and  devoted  to  the  work 
of  the  Church  and  Sabbath  School.  He  was  a  devout  and 
humble  follower  of  the  Blessed  Saviour,  preferring  the 
Bible  and  Shorter  Catechism  to  books  of  speculation  on 
the  subject  of  religion.  He  passed  from  earth  December 
9,  1883,  to  realize  the  eternal  reward  of  a  life  spent  in  serv- 
ing the  Lord,  and  doing  good  to  his  fellow  men. 

Mrs.  Gordon  was  a  kindred  spirit  —  having  a  precious 
inheritance  of  faith  and  piety  from  a  fine  Christian 
ancestry  on  both  sides  of  her  house.  She  is  an  enthusi- 
astic genealogist.  The  compiler  of  this  book  owes  his 
interest  in  the  work  largely  to  Mrs.  Gordon  and  Miss 
Fanny  Davis.  At  a  time  when  he  knew  very  little  indeed 
of  our  ancestral  history,  these  two  ladies,  by  the  researches 
they  had  made,  and  the  interest  they  manifested,  awak- 
ened a  like  interest  in  him. 

Mrs.  Gordon  is  a  little  woman,  but  she  has  a  great 
heart  and  a  noble  spirit.  She  has  an  active  and  well 
stored  mind  —  too  much  spirit  and  intelligence,  indeed, 


IV.  JOHN  169 

for  her  little  body.  I  cannot  begin  to  name  the  organ- 
izations in  Wilkinsburg  and  Pittsburg  of  which  she  is  a 
member  —  one  or  two  of  which  she  founded;  there  are 
literary  clubs  and  philanthropic  societies;  work  for  the 
poor  and  the  sick;  church  work;  work  for  temperance, 
and  work  for  missions;  a  hospital  for  tuberculosis  sub- 
jects; efforts  at  ci\'ic  improvement  and  patriotic  advance- 
ment —  the  latter  through  the  Colonial  Dames  and 
D.  A.  R.  WTien  at  home  she  has  so  many  of  these  in- 
terests pressing  upon  her  that,  with  her  feeble  health 
and  "often  infirmities,"  there  is  soon  a  collapse,  and 
nothing  gives  her  relief  but  a  trip  abroad,  and  a  residence 
among  the  mountains  of  the  TjtoI,  or  elsewhere,  where 
many  years  of  her  widowhood  have  been  spent.  Nor  is 
she  idle  there,  but,  in  a  climate  which  gives  her  relief 
from  some  of  her  home  ailments,  she  finds  a  new  field 
of  endeavor  and  an  outlet  for  her  humane  sympathies 
and  Christian  enthusiasm. 

7.  George  Kennedy  Horner,  born  in  1845,  inherit- 
ing the  spirit,  and  following  the  traditions  of  his  fathers, 
enlisted  in  company  with  James  Davis  Gibson  in  Cap- 
tain Huidekooper's  Company  F,  58th  Pennsylvania  Mili- 
tia. This  company  assisted  in  the  capture  of  General 
Morgan  and  his  men,  then  raiding  in  Ohio,  and  with 
Company  C  of  the  same  regiment  was  detailed  to  take 
the  prisoners  to  Columbus. 

George  K.  Horner  in  early  life  was  brought  under  the 
influence  of  a  true  faith  in  the  realities  of  life  and  eternity 
—  a  faith  which  deepened  and  strengthened  with  the 
passing  years;  so  that,  when  the  hour  of  departure  ar- 
rived, he  passed  into  the  other  life  with  joy  and  triumph. 
He  was  a  member  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  of 
Wilkinsburg. 

8.  WiLLL\M  Henry  Horner,  fifth  in  descent  from 
James  Davis,  founder  and  patriot,  on  his  mother's  side, 
and  from  Lieutenant-Colonel  Robert  Dunning,  through 


170  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

his  father's  family,  was  also  a  brave  soldier.  Enlisting 
in  Hampton's  Battery,  Pennsylvania  Artillery,  when  but 
fifteen  years  of  age,  on  June  12,  1862,  he  remained  in  the 
army  until  the  close  of  the  war.  He  was  stationed  at 
Harper's  Ferry,  Va.,  and  took  part  in  many  battles  and 
skirmishes.  Shortly  before  the  army  disbanded  he  con- 
tracted the  measles,  from  the  effects  of  which  he  never 
fully  recovered,  his  death  resulting  April  27,  1866,  when 
he  was  only  nineteen  years  of  age.  Throughout  a  long 
illness  William  bore  his  sufferings  with  unfailing  patience 
and  gentleness.  As  the  end  approached  he  calmly  said, 
"I  am  not  afraid  to  die;  I  think  I  shall  go  to  heaven." 
Thus  peacefully  did  the  young  patriot's  brave  spirit  pass 
into  the  life  beyond.  His  body  lies  in  the  family  lot  in 
the  Allegheny  Cemetery,  Pittsburg. 

F.  James  McGunnegle  Davis,  seventh  child  and 
fourth  son  of  John  and  Mary  M.  Davis,  was  born  near 
Meadville  December  8,  1808,  and  died  in  Philadelphia 
April  5,  1850.  He  married  Joanna  Jones  O'Brien,  who 
was  born  in  Ireland  and  was  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
faith.  They  lived  in  Philadelphia,  where  Mr.  Davis  was 
engaged  in  the  transportation  business,  the  firm  being 
Davis  and  McFaden.  They  had  charge  of  the  Reliance 
Portage  Line  of  Canal  Boats,  with  terminals  in  Phila- 
delphia and  Pittsburg,  Mr.  McFaden  being  in  the  latter 
city.  The  boats  were  in  sections,  and  were  on  trucks, 
drawn  by  mules  across  the  portages,  and,  arriving  in 
Philadelphia,  they  were  again  put  on  trucks,  and  drawn 
by  mules  down  Market  Street  to  the  warehouse  between 
Ninth  and  Tenth  streets.  "I  remember,"  says  Mrs. 
Scully,  "the  pleasure  it  gave  me  to  be  taken  to  my  father's 
warehouse,  to  see  the  mules  drawing  the  boats,  and  to 
hear  the  noise  made  by  the  drivers  urging  them  on." 
The  completion  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  put  an  end 
to  this  kind  of  transportation. 


IV.  JOHN  171 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  had  four  children:  1.  Mary  J., 
2.  Eleanor  G.,  3.  John  K.,  and  4.  James.  Mrs.  Davis 
and  the  children  moved  to  Pittsburg,  after  Mr.  Davis's 
death  in  1850.     Mrs.  Davis  died  in  Pittsburg. 

1.  Mary  J.  Davis  was  married  to  Harmer  Denny 
Scully,  of  Pittsburg,  in  the  Cathedral,  November  26, 
1857.     To  them  were  born  four  children: 

1.  James  Davis  Scully,  who  died  August  11,  1859, 

2.  Agnes  M.  Scully,  born  March  1,  1860.  She  was 
married  to  Edwin  A.  Mason  February  9,  1888.  They 
had  two  children:  1.  Albert  Mason,  born  June  5,  1890, 
who  died  June  10,  1891,  2.  Edwin  Scully  Mason,  born 
September  9,  1891.  Mrs.  Mason  died  September  27, 
1891.  Mr.  Mason  is  in  the  cordage  business  in  Pittsburg. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church. 

3.  Genevieve  Scully  was  born  in  1862,  and  died 
April  28,   1872. 

4.  Harmer  Denny  Scully  was  born  July  27,  1864. 
He  is  corresponding  clerk  in  the  Dollar  Savings  Bank 
of  Pittsburg. 

G.  Margaret  Kennedy  Davis,  sixth  child  and  third 
daughter  of  John  and  Mary  M.  Davis,  was  born  June  5, 
1811,  and  died  October  26,  1857.  She  was  married  to 
William  Davis,  son  of  Samuel,  February  23,  1836. 
They  had  eight  children:  1.  and  2.  twins,  George  Mc- 
GuiRE,  and  Samuel  Means  Davis,  3.  Willie  Anne 
Means  Davis,  4.  Mary  McGunnegle  Davis,  5.  Francis 
Kennedy  Davis,  6.  Eliza  C.  Davis,  7.  Jesse  Wilson 
Dick  Davis,  and  8.  Rosamond  Gilliland  Davis.  Of 
Margaret's  children  the  first  three  died  young;  the  fourth, 
Mrs.  Alfred  Flick,  is  living  at  Hadley,  Mercer  County, 
Pa. ;  the  fifth,  Frank,  entered  the  Union  Army  at  eighteen 
and  conducted  himself  nobly  during  the  war.  He  died 
in  Kansas  in  1882.     The  sixth,  Eliza,  died  in  1863,  in 


172  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

her  nineteenth  year.  The  seventh,  Jesse,  is  living  at 
Tahoka,  Tex.,  in  the  real  estate  business.  He  is  a  live 
man  —  full  of  public  spirit  —  and  a  great  hustler.  He 
has  three  fine  boys  —  Carl,  Jesse,  and  Lloyd  —  aged, 
respectively,  twenty,  nineteen,  and  eighteen.  The  eighth, 
Rosamond,  married  James  Hopejoy,  in  1873,  and  died 
in  Arkansas,  in  1875.  For  further  particulars  concerning 
Margaret,  her  husband,  and  her  children,  see  "William" 
under  Samuel. 

2.  Eleanor  Gibson  Davis,  second  daughter  of  James 
M.  and  Joanna  J.  Davis,  was  born  in  Philadelphia,  taken 
when  young  to  Pittsburg,  and  lived  with  her  mother 
until  the  death  of  the  latter.  From  that  time  until  her 
death  she  and  her  sister,  Mrs.  Scully,  were  constant  com- 
panions and  mutual  helpers.  Early  in  1911  Eleanor  was 
very  suddenly  and  unexpectedly  removed  by  death,  to 
the  great  loss  and  grief  of  her  sister.  Our  cousin  was  a 
fine  character,  a  faithful  member  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
Church,  and  in  personal  appearance  and  manner  a  typical 
Davis. 

3.  John  Kennedy  Davis,  third  child  of  James  M. 
and  Joanna  J.  Davis,  was  born  in  Philadelphia  January 
29,  1846.  He  married  Sarah  Kirby  April  16,  1888. 
They  had  two  children:  1.  Marguerite  Davis  and  Ralph 
Kennedy  Davis.  Both  are  living;  but  Mrs.  Davis  has 
departed  this  life. 

H.  Eleanor  Gibson  Davis,  the  youngest  of  the  family 
of  John  and  Mary  M.  Davis,  was  born  in  Pittsburg 
January  20,  1815,  and  died  in  Springfield,  O.,  September 
6,  1890.  She  was  married  to  James  Herriott  Gibson,  a 
dry-goods  merchant  of  Meadville,  January  30,  1840. 
Mrs.  Eleanor  Davis  Gibson  was  an  intelligent  and  inter- 
esting lady,  who  was  a  faithful  member  of  the  Protestant 


R'.  JOHN  173 

Episcopal  Church,  reared  a  fine  family,  and  was  admired 
and  loved  by  her  children  and  friends.  She  spent  the 
closing  years  of  her  useful  life  in  the  home  of  her  son, 
James  Davis  Gibson,  at  Springfield,  O.  A  fall  down  a 
stairway  resulted  in  her  death.  It  was  a  terrible  accident 
to  her;  to  her  friends  it  was  a  calamity;  but  to  the  Heav- 
enly Father  it  was  a  means  of  bringing  to  Himself,  and  to 
eternal  peace  and  joy,  one  whom  He  greatly  loved.  To 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Gibson  were  born  eight  children:  1.  Henry 
B..  -2.  Mart  E.,  3.  James  D.,  4.  Eliza  S.,  5.  Ellen  H., 
6.  Frances  J.,  7.  Wit j.t \2,i  D.,  and  S.  EDW^N  F. 

1.  Henry  Bosler  Gibson  was  bom  December  16, 
1840,  and  died  March  8,  1891.  He  married  SaR-\h  E. 
Lewis  of  Binghamton,  X.  Y.,  October  12,  1865.  They 
had  one  child,  Clifford  Con"way  Gibson,  born  March 
4,  1876,  and  died  December  15,  1878.  Mr.  Gibson's 
business  for  many  years  was  that  of  financier  for  such 
firms  as  the  "\Mieeler  and  Wilson  Sewing  Machine  Com- 
pany (from  which  firm  he  received  a  salary  of  810,000  a 
year)  and  Hall's  Safe  and  Lock  Company.  He  died  at 
the  country  home  of  his  wife's  brother  in  Pohagon,  Mich., 
where  ^L*.  and  ^L-s.  Gibson  had  gone  when  he  was  over- 
come by  ill  health.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church. 

2.  "^Lkry  Ele-O^'OR  Gibson,  bom  May  14,  184'-2,  was 
married,  April  -26,  1866,  to  Fil\ncis  ^L\rion  True,  who 
was  born  in  Mead\'ille  February  16,  184'-2.  After  their 
marriage  ^Lr.  and  ^NL-s.  True  lived  in  Titusville,  then  in 
Meadville.  For  many  years  past  Erie,  Pa.,  has  been 
the  home  of  the  family. 

Mr.  True,  who  died  February  16,  1896,  was  a  true 
patriot  and  brave  soldier.  In  the  War  for  the 
Union  he  belonged  to  the  150th  Regiment,  Pennsyl- 
vania   Volunteer   Infantry   (the   "Bucktail   Regiment"), 


174  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

and  he  was  in  the  battles  of  Bull  Run,  Gettysburg,  and 
the  Wilderness. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  True  had  three  children:  1.  Ellen  F., 
2.  William  D.,  3.  Arthur  W. 

1.  Ellen  Foster  True,  born  March  20,  1867,  was 
educated  in  the  public  schools  of  Erie,  learned  the  art  of 
printing,  and  is  in  a  large  job-printing  house  in  Erie, 
where  she  is  engaged  in  press-feeding.  But  "Miss  Nellie 
True"  is  an  expert,  and  is  capable  of  almost  any  kind 
of  work  that  is  required  in  such  an  establishment. 

2.  William  Davis  True,  born  December  24,  1871, 
was  killed  by  a  train  of  cars,  at  Painesville,  O.,  when  he 
was  nearly  thirty  years  of  age. 

3.  Arthur  Willis  True,  born  February  15,  1878,  is 
in  business  in  Erie.  He  is  married,  and  has  one  daughter, 
Leona  Josephine,  who  was  born  January  5,  1901. 

A  correspondent,  giving  to  me  the  names  and  places 
of  residence  of  members  of  our  family  circle  whom  I  had 
never  seen,  wrote  me,  "Mary  Gibson  True  is  a  very 
handsome,  good  woman,  living  in  Erie,  Pa."  When  later 
I  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  and  becoming  acquainted 
with  Mrs.  True,  I  found  her  a  very  fine  type  of  the  women 
descended  from  Mary  Means.  All  of  this  family  are  in 
the  Episcopal  Church. 

3.  James  Davis  Gibson,  born  October  11,  1844,  mar- 
ried Lucy  Ellen  Ziegler  in  Dayton,  O.,  December  23, 
1869.  The  officiating  minister  was  Rev.  S.  D.  Clayton, 
an  uncle  of  the  bride.  To  them  were  born  six  children 
—  three  sons,  all  living,  and  three  daughters,  all  de- 
ceased: 1.  Grace  E.,  2.  Ellie  C,  3.  John  C,  4.  Albert 
D.,  5.  James  A.,  6.  Lucy  C. 

Mr.  Gibson  was  for  many  years,  during  the  palmy  days 
of  the  sewing-machine  business,  a  general  agent  in  that 
work,  but  of  recent  years  his  occupation  is  that  of  looking 
after  his  real  estate  in  the  city  of  Dayton.     "His  char- 


IV.  JOHN  175 

acter  would  bear  investigation  from  the  day  of  his  birth 
to  the  present  time.  He  is  a  man  of  the  strictest  integ- 
rity, and  he  has  never  in  his  Hfe  used  tobacco  or  hquor." 

During  the  ^Ya^  for  the  Union  ]Mr.  Gibson  enhsted  first 
in  a  regiment  recruited  at  Pittsburg  for  ninety  days' 
service.  He  took  part  in  the  capture  of  Gen.  John  Mor- 
gan, and  his  company  was  detailed  to  conduct  Morgan 
and  his  men  to  the  Columbus,  O.,  penitentiary.  After 
this  he  served  to  the  close  of  the  war  in  Company  I, 
2d  Pennsylvania  Cavalry.  Although  wounded  in  an 
action  at  St.  Mary's  Church,  Va.,  he  was  present  at  the 
surrender  of  General  Lee  at  Appomattox. 

ISLc.  and  ]Mrs.  Gibson  belong  to  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church.  Mr.  Gibson  has  for  many  years  been  active  in 
church  work,  being  superintendent  of  the  Sunday  School, 
member  of  the  official  board,  etc. 

As  to  Mrs.  Gibson,  I  shall  give  what  she  gave  me  in 
private  correspondence  without  a  thought  of  its  being 
published.  I  give  it  that  we  may  all  know  what  kind 
of  a  cousin  we  have  in  her,  and  in  hope  that  it  may  stim- 
ulate and  encourage  some  of  the  younger  feminine  mem- 
bers of  our  family  circle:  "For  ten  years  past  I  have 
devoted  a  part  of  my  time  to  teaching  domestic  science, 
a  profession  that  holds  for  me  the  same  charm  that  art 
does  for  some  others.  Naturally  I  am  domestic  in  my 
tastes,  and,  from  the  time  I  had  children  to  care  for,  I 
began  to  study  the  subject  of  foods,  cookery,  etc.,  for 
their  benefit  and  my  own.  Wlien  my  children  were 
small  I  took  my  first  course  privately  with  a  teacher  of 
domestic  science.  Years  later  my  sister,  li\Tng  in  Iowa, 
being  president  of  the  Y.  W.  C.  A.  of  her  to\\Ti,  prevailed 
upon  me  to  give  for  them  a  course  of  lectures  and  demon- 
strations. Later  I  was  in\'ited  to  do  the  same  work  at 
Cedar  Rapids,  Iowa.  Then  the  Y.  W.  C.  A.  of  my  own 
city  sought  my  ser\'ices.  Then  the  National  Cash  Regis- 
ter Company  engaged  me  to  help  them  in  their  welfare 


176  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

work  for  women,  by  teaching  them  to  cook.  And  so 
the  work  has  grown  on  my  hands,  until,  for  eight  winters 
past,  I  have  conducted  courses  in  domestic  science  for 
our  Y.  W.  C.  A.,  our  Miami  Valley  Hospital  Nurses,  and 
the  National  Cash  Register  Company.  When  my  work 
closes,  early  in  March,  I  usually  have  several  engagements 
for  short  courses  in  other  cities.  That  is  my  present 
mission  in  Sandusky,  where  I  have  a  class  of  one  hundred 
and  twenty-five  ladies,  all  interested  in  the  womanly 
occupation  of  home-making.  Since  my  work  began  to 
grow  upon  me,  I  have  continued  my  studies,  and  have 
had  the  advantage  of  a  course  in  Teachers'  College, 
Columbia  University,  and  some  special  courses  in  the 
chemistry  of  foods,  nutrition,  etc.,  under  the  best  of 
teachers,  and  the  more  I  learn,  the  more  I  want  to  know." 
Children  of  James  D.  and  Lucy  Z.  Gibson: 
1.  Grace  Ellen  Gibson,  born  December  15,  1870, 
and  died  in  Springfield,  O.,  May  15,  1890.  Noticing  that 
Grace  was  a  young  woman  of  nineteen,  I  requested  her 
mother  to  tell  me  something  about  her.  I  shall  copy 
her  reply,  hoping  that  it  may  do  our  hearts  good,  and 
be  a  blessing  to  the  dear  young  girls  in  our  families.  Her 
mother  wrote:  "Attractive  in  appearance,  and  genial  in 
her  disposition,  her  friends  still  remember  the  sweet 
smile  with  which  she  always  greeted  them.  Grace  was 
much  taller  and  heavier  than  I  am,  for  I  am  a  little 
woman,  and  I  learned  to  depend  upon  her  in  many  ways. 
We  were  more  like  sisters  than  mother  and  daughter. 
She  was  educated  in  the  Springfield  public  schools,  and 
at  Wittenberg  College. 

"She  was  blessed  with  abounding  good  health  until 
shortly  before  her  death,  when  she  had  an  attack  of 
la  grippe.  She  was  ill  only  two  weeks.  When  she  learned 
that  she  must  give  up  her  young  life  at  an  age  when 
everything  seemed  so  bright  before  her,  she  was  wonder- 
fully sustained  by  her  faith  and  trust  in  the  Saviour,  whom 


rv'.  JOHN  177 

from  her  childhood  she  had  loved.  Her  death  was  a  trans- 
lation. She  almost  sang  herself  through  the  pearly  gates; 
and  with  breaking  heart,  sustained  by  a  power  from 
above,  I  sang  to  her  the  sweet  songs  of  Israel,  which 
seemed  to  be  a  great  comfort  to  her  in  her  last  days. 
Together  we  sang, 

'*'0h.  how  sweet  it  will  be  in  that  beautiful  land, 
So  free  from  all  sorrow  and  pain, 

With  songs  on  our  lips,  and  with  harps  in  our  hands. 
To  greet  one  another  again!' 

Surely  she  was  'compassed  about  with  songs  of  deliv- 
erance.' 

'"During  her  illness  she  several  times  repeated  the 
'  Gloria  in  Excelsis,*  in  which  her  grandmother  Gibson 
joined  her." 

t2.  Ellie  Clayton  Gibson,  born  at  Bryan,  O.,  Decem- 
ber 5,  1873,  died  September  10,  1874. 

3.  John  Clare  Gibson  was  born  in  Erie,  Pa.,  Decem- 
ber 20,  1875.  He  received  a  good  common-school  educa- 
tion, and  was  graduated  from  the  high  school.  He 
entered  the  ser^'ice  of  the  Bell  Telephone  Company,  and 
is  now  one  of  the  state  officials  of  that  company.  On 
Jime  '24,  1903,  he  married  ^L\ry  Cornells  HL^rkins  of 
Columbus,  0.  She  is  a  daughter  of  ^Ir.  and  ^Irs.  Cass 
Harkins.  ^Ir.  Harkins  is  a  well  known  business  man  of 
Columbus,  a  manufacturer's  agent,  equipping  plants  with 
machinery  of  aU  kinds.  ^Irs.  J.  C.  Gibson  is  a  thor- 
oughly good  woman,  practical,  sensible,  and  lovable  — 
one  who  has  a  host  of  friends  —  and  one  of  whom  her 
husband  has  reason  to  be  proud.  They  are  members  of 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 

4.  Albert  Davis  Gibson  was  born  in  Dayton,  O., 
August  15,  1878.  He  took  a  full  course  in  the  pubhc 
schools,  graduating  from  the  high  school.  He  also  is 
connected  with  the  Bell  Telephone  Company,  being  man- 
ager of  contracts,  at  Painesville,  O.     On  August  11,  1900, 


178  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

he  married  Erma  Belle  Noble,  of  Dayton,  O.,  a  grand- 
daughter of  WilHam  Chrisman,  who,  with  his  family, 
are  among  Dayton's  well  known  and  highly  respected 
people.  Mr.  Chrisman  is  a  railroad  contractor,  having 
had  the  contract  for  constructing  the  roadbeds  of  many 
railroad  and  traction  lines,  not  only  in  the  vicinity  of 
Dayton,  but  in  different  parts  of  the  country.  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  A.  D.  Gibson  have  a  daughter  named  Erma  Lucile 
Gibson,  who  was  born  in  Dayton  March  9,  1902. 

Mrs.  A.  D.  Gibson  is,  through  her  mother,  of  English 
ancestry,  and  I  have  excellent  authority  for  saying  that 
she  is  a  very  sweet  woman,  and  a  good  wife  and  mother. 
She  and  her  husband  are  members  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church. 

5.  James  Archie  Gibson  was  born  at  Springfield,  O., 
August  1,  1882.  He  had  the  same  educational  advan- 
tages with  his  brothers;  and  like  them  he  entered  the 
service  of  the  Bell  Telephone  Company,  and  is  manager 
of  the  Contract  Department  at  San  Jose,  Cal.  He  also 
is  a  member  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 

6.  Lucy  Clayton  Gibson,  born  at  Springfield,  0., 
July  17,  1887,  died  July  11,  1888. 

4.  Eliza  Susan  Gibson  was  born  in  Meadville,  Pa., 
Sept.  24,  1846.  She  was  married  in  Pittsburg,  Pa., 
September  30,  1869,  to  William  Luther  David.  To 
them  were  given  five  sons:  1.  Benjamin  G.,  2.  William 
L.,  3.  Harry  G.,  4.  Arthur  E.,  5.  Charles  S. 

William  Luther  David,  Sr.,  was  the  son  of  Benjamin 
Gans  David,  who  was  the  son  of  Jonathan,  who  was 
the  son  of  Owen,  who  was  the  son  of  Enoch,  who  was  the 
son  of  Owen  David.  The  last-named  Owen  David 
came  to  the  United  States  from  Wales,  and  settled  in 
Philadelphia  long  before  the  Revolutionary  War.  Enoch 
David  was  a  Baptist  minister,  who  preached  in  and  about 
Philadelphia  and  Germantown.     The  first-named  Owen 


I 


IV.  JOHN  179 

David  was  also  a  Baptist  minister.  He  came  to  Craw- 
ford County,  Pa.,  in  1800.  He  died  near  Brownsville, 
Pa.,  in  1837. 

The  grandmother  of  William  L.  David,  Sr.,  was  Cath- 
erine, the  daughter  of  Benjamin  Gans,  the  son  of  George, 
the  son  of  Jacob,  the  son  of  George  Baltzer  Gans,  who 
came  from  Germany  in  1722,  and  was  one  of  the  founders 
and  fathers  of  the  Church  of  the  Dunkard  Brethren  in 
the  United  States.  He  was  a  minister,  and  labored  in 
eastern  Pennsylvania,  especially  at  Germantown.  A 
statement  in  regard  to  him  may  be  found  in  the  "His- 
tory of  Religions,"  under  the  head  of  Dunkards.  He  had 
fled  to  this  country  to  escape  persecution  in  the  home  land. 

Benjamin  Gans  David,  father  of  W.  L.  David,  Sr.,  was 
born  December  31,  1820,  and  was  an  intelligent,  public- 
spirited,  and  highly  respected  man.  He  was  for  twenty- 
seven  years  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  in  Crawford  County. 
He  was  clerk  of  the  County  Courts,  County  commissioner, 
and  as  such  his  name  is  on  the  corner-stone  of  the  court- 
house in  Meadville.  He  was  also  a  member  of  the  state 
legislature. 

W.  L.  David,  Sr.,  was  actively  and  continuously  in 
the  hardware  business  from  eighteen  years  of  age  until 
six  months  before  his  decease.  At  the  time  of  his  death 
he  was  senior  warden  of  Trinity  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church,  of  Findlay,  O.  He  and  Mrs.  David  were  active 
members  of  that  church. 

With  regard  to  Mrs.  David  I  cannot  do  better  than 
give  what  Mrs.  J.  D.  Gibson  wrote  me,  concerning  her 
and  her  sister,  Mrs.  True:  "I  think  very  highly  of  each 
and  every  one  of  my  husband's  sisters  and  brothers. 
They  are  all  people  of  refinement,  and  have  made  the 
most  of  their  opportunities  for  culture.  Mary,  Mrs. 
True,  and  Lidie,  Mrs.  David,  are  very  different  in  dis- 
position. Lidie  is  a  leader,  while  Mary  requires  some 
one  to  go  ahead  and  prepare  a  way  for  her.     Mary  is  a 


180  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

gentlewoman  in  appearance  and  manner,  and  possesses 
a  natural  grace  of  manner  that  is  very  attractive.  In 
speech,  dignified  and  quiet,  yet  a  good  converser.  Both 
are  true,  good  women,  and  both  are  devout  church- 
women.  Lidie  is  the  leading  spirit  in  all  of  the  women's 
work  of  the  parish,  as  well  as  in  the  D.  A.  R.  Chapter,  of 
which  she  is  a  member.  She  is  a  capable,  efficient  worker 
along  many  lines.  And  if  she  had  never  accomplished 
anything  else  in  her  life,  the  family  of  boys  she  has  reared 
would  alone  be  a  great  deal  to  her  credit.  For  in  their 
community  they  stand  respected  by  all,  as  model  young 
men  for  integrity  and  right  living." 

This  fine  and  most  useful  and  much-loved  woman, 
Mrs.  David,  passed  away,  to  enter  upon  the  eternal 
reward  of  the  faithful,  March  4,  1909. 

The  children  of  W.  L.,  Sr.,  and  Mrs.  E.  S.  David: 

1.  Benjamin  Gans  David,  the  eldest  son,  was  born 
at  Meadville,  Pa.,  June  25,  1870,  and  died  at  Cleveland, 
O.,  December  15,  1875. 

2.  William  Luther  David,  Jr.,  was  born  at  Titus- 
ville.  Pa.,  February  29,  1872.  He  had  a  good  education 
in  the  public  schools,  and  was  admitted  to  the  Bar  June 
11,  1896,  and  practised  law  in  Findlay,  O.,  with  great 
success.  He  was  elected  prosecuting  attorney  in  Novem- 
ber, 1902,  and  was  reelected  in  November,  1905.  He 
proved  to  be  a  strong  man,  and,  to  have  a  wider  field, 
he  moved  to  Cleveland,  O.,  where  he  is  in  practice  with 
Blandin,  Rice,  &  Ginn,  Attorneys-at-Law.  Mr.  David 
is  an  honored  member  of  many  societies,  but  what  is  of 
much  greater  importance,  he  is  a  Christian,  and  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 

On  July  3,  1903,  he  received  a  commission  from  Gov- 
ernor George  K.  Nash  as  Captain  of  Company  A,  2d 
Regiment  of  Infantry,  Ohio  National  Guard.  And  on 
March  7,  1905,  he  received,  from  Governor  Myron  T. 
Herrick,  a  commission  as  Major,  and  Brigade  Ordnance 


IV.  JOHN  181 

Officer,  1st  Brigade,  Ohio  National  Guard,  assigned  to  the 
staff  of  Gen.  Wm.  V.  McMaken. 

On  April  5,  1899,  Mr.  David  married  Eleanor  Lydia 
Sherk.  She  was  a  graduate  of  the  Findlay  High  School, 
and  had  won  the  degree  of  Ph.B.  from  Findlay  College. 
They  have  a  son,  George  Hamilton  DAVid,  born  June 
11,  1904. 

3.  IL\RRY  Gibson  David  was  born  in  Cleveland,  O., 
August  18,  1875.  He  was  educated  in  the  public  schools 
and  was  graduated  from  the  business  department  of 
Findlay  College  in  1894.  He  learned  the  trade  of  a 
machinist,  and  worked  at  it  for  eight  years.  He  then 
entered  into  partnership  with  F.  D.  Howe,  in  1905,  in  the 
coal,  transfer,  and  storage  business. 

On  September  17,  1902,  he  married  Martha  L.  Mc- 
KJELVY,  the  second  daughter  of  Samuel  Lee  McKelvy 
and  Mollie  Frances  Lee.  They  have  a  son,  Francis  Lee 
David,  born  January  23,  1906. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Harry  David  are  members  of  the  Prot- 
estant Episcopal  Church. 

4.  Arthur  E.  David  was  born  June  13,  1879,  at 
SaegerstowTi,  Pa.  He  was  graduated  from  the  Findlay 
High  School  in  1899.  He  then  entered  Kenyon  College, 
where  he  remained  one  year,  pursuing  a  classical  course, 
and  becoming  a  member  of  Psi  TJpsilon  Society,  and  of 
the  College  Glee  Club.  Leaving  college,  he  engaged  in 
newspaper  work,  in  which  he  has  continued  ever  since, 
reporting  first  for  the  Findlay  Morning  Republican,  then 
for  the  Toledo  News,  and  afterward  for  the  Toledo  Blade. 

On  October  24,  1907,  he  married  Hazel  Wilder 
Sprague,  second  daughter  of  Horace  W.  and  Myrtle 
Fernside  Sprague,  of  Toledo,  O.  They  are  members  of 
the  Trinity  Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  of  Findlay, 
Mr.  Arthur  David  having  sung  as  a  member  of  the  vested 
choir  of  that  church  for  eleven  years. 

5.  Charles  S.  David  was  born  at  Rome,  N.  Y.,  April 


182  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

22,  1882.  He  is  a  railroad  engineer,  being  employed  on 
the  main  line  of  the  C.  H.  &  D.  Railway  Co.  On  July 
24,  1906,  he  married  Iva  L.  Holman,  daughter  of  Jay 
and  Emma  Holman.  Iva  was  a  city  school-teacher  for 
two  years  before  her  marriage.  They  have  a  son,  Jay 
Robert  David,  born  May  7,  1907. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Charles  David  are  members  of  the  Prot- 
estant Episcopal  Church,  Mr.  David  having  sung  in  the 
choir  of  that  church  for  a  number  of  years. 

5.  Ellen  Herriott  Gibson  was  born  June  11,  1848, 
and  died  May  25,  1869,  at  Janesville,  Wis.,  where  she 
was  visiting  her  cousin,  Mrs.  Mary  D.  McArthur. 

6.  Frances  Joan  Gibson  was  born  March  19,  1850. 
"Fanny  Gibson,"  the  name  by  which  she  was  best  known 
and  loved,  had  her  home  for  many  years  with  her  sister, 
Mrs.  David;  and  if  ever  a  family  of  boys  had  two  mothers 
at  the  same  time,  it  was  Mrs.  David's  sons.  It  was 
doubtful  which  of  the  two  had  the  stronger  hold  on  their 
affections.  Fanny  was  a  professional  nurse,  and  for 
many  years  was  at  work  in  the  service  of  suffering  human- 
ity. She  was  a  woman  of  very  bright  mind,  and  unusual 
originality,  a  strong  character,  a  most  womanly  woman, 
a  devout  church- woman,  and  one  of  those  people  who 
carry  sunshine  and  cheer  to  all  with  whom  they  come  in 
contact. 

This  grand  woman  was  accidentally  drowned,  while 
temporarily  deranged,  March  4,  1910.  The  sudden  death 
of  her  beloved  sister  caused  a  nervous  collapse,  which 
culminated  in  acute  mania.  A  few  weeks  at  the  State 
Hospital  at  Toledo  wrought  a  complete  recovery,  and 
she  was  dismissed  as  cured.  After  some  time  a  slight 
illness  was  followed  by  increased  nervousness,  and  a 
dread  that  she  might  have  another  attack  of  mania. 
Leaving  the  house  one  evening,  apparently  in  her  right 


V.   PATRICK  183 

mind,  to  call  upon  a  friend,  she  did  not  do  so,  but  wan- 
dered off  along  the  river,  by  a  most  difficult  route,  for 
four  or  five  miles.  Her  footprints  and  other  circum- 
stances rendered  it  certain  that  her  falhng  into  the  river 
was  accidental. 

7.  Willl\:m  Davis  Gibson  was  born  May  13,  1852. 
He  has  never  married,  and  has  become  noted  for  almost 
never  writing  a  letter,  so  that  his  location  at  present  is 
unknown.  He  is  a  man  of  pleasing  personality,  making 
friends  wherever  he  goes;  and  is  loved  by  all  of  the  family. 

8.  ED^\aN  Foster  Gibson  was  born  March  26,  1856. 
He  died  at  Mlford,  :Mich.,  May  22,  1905.  He  was  a 
traveling  salesman.  He  was  married  twice,  but  left  no 
children. 

V.  PATRICK 

Patrick  DA\r[s,  fifth  son  of  William  and  Mary 
Means  Davis,  was  born  in  Tinicum  Township,  Bucks 
County,  Pa.,  in  1766;  and  died  on  his  farm  in  East  Mead 
Township,  Crawford  County,  Pa.,  September  22,  1847, 
being  eighty-one  years  of  age.  He  was  named  after  his 
uncle,  Capt.  Patrick  Da\'is,  who  figured  in  the  French 
and  Indian  War.  He  settled  in  Meadville,  Pa.,  in  the 
summer  of  1795;  and  the  next  year  he  opened  a  tan- 
yard  on  Dock  Street.  In  this  business  he  was  engaged 
for  many  years.  He  lived  where  the  residence  of  the 
late  James  Porter  stands,  the  tannery  being  behind  his 
house.  His  intelligent  public  spirit  is  e\ndent  from  the 
fact  that  when  the  Meadville  Academy  was  founded  in 
1805,  Patrick  Da^^s,  as  one  of  the  founders,  gave  one 
hundred  and  fifty  dollars,  a  large  sum  in  those  days. 

He  became  the  owner  of  a  farm  in  East  Mead  Town- 
ship, on  which  he  lived,  with  his  family,  during  the  latter 
part  of  his  life. 


184  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

While  in  Meadville  he  and  his  family  attended  the 
First  Presbyterian  Church.  When  the  United  Presby- 
terian Church  was  built  in  Cochranton,  they  attended  it. 

Mr.  Davis  was  married  twice.  His  first  wife  was  a 
Miss  Hart.  They  had  four  children:  1.  William, 
2.  John,  3.  Alexander,  4.  Eliza. 

A.  William  Davis,  born  April  20,  1801,  grew  up  in 
Meadville.  He  then  went  to  Ohio,  settled  in  the  Western 
Reserve,  prospered  in  his  business,  was  public-spirited 
and  generous,  and  became  one  of  the  founders  and  bene- 
factors of  Hiram  College. 

He  married,  and  had  three  children:  1.  William,  who 
lived  in  Akron,  O.,  and  was  a  druggist;  2.  Dexter,  3. 
Eliza,  who  became  Mrs.  Hart. 

B.  John  Davis,  born  September  26,  1803,  went  West. 
The  report  came  to  Meadville  that  he  perished  in  a 
blizzard  in  Missouri. 

C.  Alexander  Davis  was  born  November  9,  1805.  I 
have  no  other  information  concerning  him. 

D.  Eliza  Davis,  born  June  9,  1807,  grew  up  and  be- 
came the  wife  of  a  Mr.  Schilling,  a  farmer  of  Mercer 
County,  Pa. 

Patrick  Davis's  second  wife  was  Isabella  Linsley, 
who  was  born  in  Ireland,  and  died  May  24,  1842.  They 
had  six  children:  1.  James  H.,  2.  Alexander  L.,  3. 
Samuel  M.,  4.  Aaron  S.,  5.  Jemima,  6.  Joseph  H. 

E.  James  H.  Davis  was  born  September  29,  1815, 
and  died  May  6,  1894,  in  his  seventy-ninth  year.  He 
received  a  common-school  education,  and  was  well  trained 
morally    and    religiously.     In    1839    he    married    Sarah 


V.    PATRICK  185 

Stockton.  They  were  members  of  the  United  Pres- 
byterian Church  in  Cochranton.  Mr.  Davis  was  a  good 
farmer,  and  his  farm  became  one  of  the  best  in  the  town- 
ship. During  his  hfe  he  paid  out  $1-2, 550  for  land,  and 
became  the  possessor  of  a  large  amount  of  property,  the 
result  of  the  labor  of  himself  and  wife.  He  built  and 
operated  a  sawmill  on  his  farm,  and  had  an  interest  in 
the  \^'arne^  Cheese  Factory.  He  took  an  active  interest 
in  the  affairs  of  the  community,  and  was  highly  respected 
and  fully  trusted  by  his  fellow  citizens.  He  was,  at 
different  times,  a  Justice  of  the  Peace,  School-director, 
Super\"isor,  Assessor,  and  Auditor  of  Mead  ToAMiship. 
He  labored  successfully,  in  his  own  and  neighboring  town- 
ships, to  secure  the  construction  of  the  Xew  York,  Penn- 
sylvania, and  Ohio  Railroad,  now  the  Erie.  In  politics 
he  was  a  Democrat.  In  184-2  Governor  Porter  commis- 
sioned him  captain  of  a  militia  company,  and  he  held 
this  office  until  the  law  governing  military  organizations 
in  Pennsylvania  was  changed. 

^Irs.  Da\-is  belonged  to  the  well-known  Stockton 
family,  first  of  Franklin,  afterward  of  Washington 
County,  which  later  scattered  through  the  West  and 
Xorthwest.  Her  father  was  Col.  Robert  Stockton,  a 
brother  of  Rev.  Joseph  Stockton,  and  himself  an  elder 
in  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Meadville.  Rev. 
Joseph  Stockton  was  bom  near  Chambersburg,  Pa., 
February  25,  1779,  In  1799  the  Rev.  Elisha  McCurdy, 
famous  in  the  annals  of  the  church,  and  Joseph  Stockton, 
a  young  licentiate,  were  sent  out  by  the  P^esb^i:ery  of 
Pittsburg,  to  explore  the  wilds  of  the  country  lying  be- 
tween Pittsbm^g  and  Lake  Erie,  and  to  preach  in  the 
new  settlements  in  that  region.  They  were  the  first  who 
preached  the  gospel  -^"ithin  the  bounds  of  what  is  now 
Crawford  County.  Among  other  places  they  preached 
at  Meadville.  The  next  year  Mr.  Stockton  received  an 
in\'itation  to  preach  there  regularly;  and  in  the  autumn 


186  THE   DAVIS   FMIILY 

of  1800  he  and  his  young  wife  left  the  Stockton  home  in 
Washington  County,  and,  with  some  household  goods, 
they  journeyed  to  their  new  home.  On  June  24,  1801, 
Mr.  Stockton  was  ordained  and  installed  as  pastor  over 
the  church  at  Meadville,  in  connection  with  that  of  Little 
Sugar  Creek,  now  Cochranton.  For  nine  years  he  re- 
mained the  pastor  of  these  churches,  at  the  same  time 
traveling  and  preaching,  as  he  had  opportunity,  at  differ- 
ent points  in  Erie  and  Mercer  counties.  When  the 
Meadville  Academy  was  founded,  in  1805,  Mr.  Stockton 
was  chosen  as  its  principal,  and  he  continued  that  impor- 
tant work,  along  with  his  pastoral  duties,  as  long  as  he 
remained  in  Meadville. 

Captain  and  Mrs.  Davis  celebrated  their  golden  wed- 
ding in  1889. 

F.  Alexander  Linsley  Davis,  second  son  of  Pat- 
rick and  Isabella  Davis,  was  born  February  1,  1817,  and 
died  May  17,  1874,  in  his  fifty-eighth  year.  He  spent 
his  life  on  his  farm  in  East  Mead  Township.  He  mar- 
ried EuPHEMiA  McNamara,  who  was  a  member  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and  whom  the  writer  had 
the  pleasure  of  meeting  in  the  "old  home"  in  1905. 
Alexander  Davis  was  considered  a  very  handsome 
man.  Mrs.  Cotton  remembers  him  as  "of  a  very 
sunny  disposition,  and  one  who  made  many  friends, 
because  of  his  pleasant  and  cordial  manner,"  and  "he 
was  a  very  kind  and  thoughtful  brother  to  his  sister 
Jemima." 

Mrs.  Euphemia  Davis  survived  her  husband  nearly 
thirty-five  years,  and  continued  to  live  in  the  "old  home" 
until  March  17,  1909,  when,  after  a  brief  illness  from 
pneumonia,  she  passed  peacefully  away,  in  the  enjoy- 
ment of  the  Christian's  blessed  hope,  and  lamented  by 
the  many  friends  who  respected  and  loved  her  for  her 
many  excellent  qualities. 


V.    PATRICK  187 

Miss  Jane  Linsley,  a  sister  of  Mrs.  Patrick  Davis, 
known  among  her  many  friends  as  "Aunt  Jane,"  made 
her  home  in  her  declining  years  at  Mr.  Alexander 
Davis's. 

Alexander  L.  and  E.  M.  Davis  had  three  children: 
Della  J.,  Mary  A.,  and  James  S. 

1.  Della  Jane  Davis,  born  August  8,  1860,  received 
her  education  in  a  good  Christian  home  and  in  the  public 
schools.  She  was  married  to  John  C.  Limber  Septem- 
ber 3,  1879.  He  was  born  in  Meadville  May  2,  1852. 
The  Limber  family  of  English  descent  were  among  the 
earliest  pioneers  of  Crawford  County.  John  C.  Limber 
received  his  education  in  the  public  schools  and  Com- 
mercial College  of  Meadville,  He  became  a  grocer,  and 
continued  in  that  business  during  his  life.  He  died  July 
14,  1900,  leaving  Mrs.  Limber  in  very  comfortable  cir- 
cumstances. 

Mr.  Limber  was  a  nephew  of  the  Rev.  John  Limber,  a 
Presbyterian  minister,  who  was  prepared  to  go  out  to 
China  as  a  missionary.  With  another  minister  he  went 
to  St.  Louis  on  business.  He  left  his  companion  for  a 
few  minutes,  saying  that  he  was  going  to  a  store  just 
around  the  corner,  to  purchase  a  Bible.  From  that 
moment  nothing  was  ever  seen  or  heard  of  him  by  his 
friends.  No  one  knows  what  happened  to  him.  Search 
was  made,  and  everything  possible  was  done  to  find  him, 
or  his  remains.     But  all  in  vain. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  John  C.  Limber  had  one  daughter 
Evelyn  B. 

1.  Evelyn  Belle  Limber  was  born  November  8, 
1880.  She  has  received  a  good  education  in  the  public 
schools  of  Meadville,  and  at  Allegheny  College.  Both 
mother  and  daughter  are  members  of  Christ  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church,  of  Meadville. 


188  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

3.  Mary  Arabelle  Davis,  born  November  5,  1863, 
received  her  education  in  the  public  schools,  and  was 
married  April  22,  1892,  to  Walter  B.  Denny. 

I  will  give  a  brief  sketch  of  the  Denny  family,  for  two 
reasons.  The  name  is  a  historic  one  in  Pennsylvania; 
and  the  Rev.  David  Denny  was  the  pastor  of  our  family 
in  Chambersburg  when  I  was  a  boy.  My  earliest  recol- 
lections, connected  with  a  minister  visiting  our  family 
and  with  the  family  going  to  church  "over  the  spring," 
are  of  "Pap  Denny,"  as  he  was  aflFectionately  called  by 
us  youngsters. 

In  1745  two  brothers,  William  and  Walter  Denny, 
moved  from  Chester  County,  Pa.,  to  the  Cumberland 
Valley.  William,  who  resided  in  Carlisle,  became  a 
commissary  and  contractor  in  the  days  of  the  Revolu- 
tion. His  son,  Ebenezer  Denny,  born  at  Carlisle  in  1761, 
became  an  ensign  in  the  First  Pennsylvania  Regiment  in 
the  Revolution.  In  1794  he  was  appointed  commander- 
in-chief  of  the  expedition  to  Le  Boeuf.  In  1816  Major 
Denny  was  elected  the  first  mayor  of  Pittsburg. 

Walter  Denny,  who  came  with  his  brother  William 
into  the  Cumberland  Valley,  raised  a  company  of  volun- 
teers, and  went  into  the  Revolutionary  conflict.  At  the 
head  of  his  company  Captain  Denny  fell  in  battle,  when 
his  eldest  son,  fighting  at  his  side,  was  captured  by  the 
enemy.  David  Denny  was  the  third  son  of  Captain 
Walter.  He  was  graduated  from  Dickinson  College, 
Carlisle,  Pa.,  and  was  licensed  to  preach  in  1792,  by  the 
Presbytery  of  Carlisle,  within  whose  bounds  he  spent 
his  life.  He  was  at  first  pastor  of  the  two  congregations 
in  Path  Valley,  and  in  1800  was  transferred  to  Chambers- 
burg where  he  was  pastor  of  the  Falling  Spring  Pres- 
byterian Church  for  thirty-eight  years.  He  died  Decem- 
ber 16,  1845,  in  his  seventy-eighth  year. 

William  Denny,  a  brother  of  David,  born  in  Carlisle 
in  1757,  moved  to  Crawford  County  in  1801,  and  pur- 


V.    PATRICK  189 

chased  a  farm  four  miles  west  of  the  \'ilJage  of  Mead\'ilJe. 
He  had  two  sons  —  Walter  and  William.  At  his  death 
the  farm  passed  into  the  possession  of  these  sons.  After 
their  death  it  became  the  property  of  William's  three 
sons  —  Joseph  W.,  Walter  B.,  and  James  P. —  who  lived 
on  the  farm  mitil  they  were  grown  up.  Joseph  remained 
there  all  his  life.  He  died  in  190S.  Walter  B.,  bom  at 
'"Widelawn,''  March  ^8,  1S44,  was  educated  in  the  public 
schools,  in  the  Mead^"iUe  Academy,  and  in  the  Business 
College.  He  then  traveled  extensively  through  the 
United  States  and  Canada,  married  Mary  A.  Davis,  as 
above  stated,  and  is  engaged  in  the  business  of  selling 
agricultural  machinery"  and  implements,  in  Mead\"ille. 
In  connection  with  his  brother  James  P.  he  owns  the  old 
Denny  homestead,  which  has  long  been  known  as  "Wide- 
lawn."  The  farm  consists  of  four  hundred  acres,  with  fine 
buildings,  and  is  one  of  the  best  farms  in  Crawford  County. 

Mr.  and  ^Irs.  Denny  have  two  children:  Irexe  B.  and 
RoYDOX  B.  These  are  fine  young  people,  who  are  receiv- 
ing a  good  education,  and  who  will,  I  trust,  be  a  source 
of  pride  and  pleasure  to  us  all. 

1.   Irene  Belke  Dexxt  was  bom  March  8,  1893. 

•2.    RoTDOX  Be.\ttt  Dexst  was  bom  April  8,  1895. 

The  family  home  is  on  Walnut  Street,  Mead\'ille:  and 
both  parents  and  children  are  members  of  Christ  Prot- 
estant Episcopal  Church,  Irene  being  also  a  member  of 
the  choir. 

3.  James  Stewart  Davis  was  bom  September  -25, 
1S69.  received  his  education  in  the  public  schools,  grew 
up  on  the  ancestral  farm  on  which  he  now  lives,  and 
married  Cl.vr-\  Ewixg.  They  have  a  son.  Alexaxder 
Myrox.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Da\-is  are  members  of  the  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  Church. 

G.  S-UiTTEL  M.  Davis,  third  son  of  Patrick  and  Isa- 
bella Da\-is,  was  bom  October  17,  1818,  and  died  January- 


190  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

29,  1889,  in  his  seventy-first  year.  On  November  19, 
1846,  he  married  Mary  Jane  Irvin,  who  was  born 
in  Mead  Township  January  12,  1825.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Davis  were  members  of  the  United  Presbyterian  Church 
of  Greenville,  Pa.,  Mr.  Davis  being  an  elder  and  a 
Sabbath  School  teacher.  Mrs.  Davis  is  still  living 
(1911)  in  the  same  place,  in  her  eighty-seventh  year. 
Their  four  children  were  Stewart  I.,  James,  Henry, 
and  William  S. 

1.  Stewart  Irvin  Davis  was  born  in  1848.  He 
taught  school  for  several  years  before  his  marriage  to 
Della  Brawley,  May  17,  1871.  After  that  event  he 
taught  for  three  or  four  years.  He  then  opened  a  store 
in  Akron,  0.  He  afterward  moved  to  Meadville,  where 
he  became  a  grocer  and  confectioner.  He  and  Mrs. 
Davis  were  members  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church. 
They  had  one  child,  Mary  B.  Mr.  Irvin  Davis  was  a 
good  and  useful  man,  but  his  life  was  a  short  one.  He 
died  January  27,  1882  when  only  thirty-three  years  of 
age. 

Mary  Belle  Davis  was  born  November  12,  1872. 
She  became  a  member  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church, 
of  Meadville,  before  she  was  fifteen.  Beside  the  usual 
course  in  the  public  schools,  she  took  an  elocutionary 
course  with  Professor  Byron  King,  of  Pittsburg,  which 
branch  she  taught  for  some  years.  She  was  married  to 
Dr.  John  Ferguson  Smith,  a  dentist  of  Cochranton,  Pa. 
Their  home  is  in  Erie,  Pa.,  where  the  doctor  is  practising 
his  profession  very  successfully.  They  are  members  of 
the  Park  Presbyterian  Church,  and  are  intelligent,  wide- 
awake citizens,  interested  in  everything  pertaining  to  the 
cause  of  Christ  and  the  welfare  of  society.  Mrs.  Smith 
is  President  of  the  W.C.T.U.  of  Erie,  and  is  State  Super- 
intendent of  Medical  Temperance,  traveling  hither  and 
thither,  lecturing  on  the  subject. 


V.    PATRICK  191 

IVIrs.  Irvin  Davis  united  with  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church  of  Meadville  in  1875.  She  became  the  wife  of 
Malcom  Huston  McComb,  of  Cochranton,  Pa.,  June 
10,  1888.  Mrs.  McComb,  who  is  again  a  widow,  is  living 
in  Erie,  Pa.,  in  the  same  house  with  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Smith. 
She  is  a  member  of  the  Park  Presbyterian  Church,  and 
an  earnest  Christian  woman. 

2.  James  Davis,  second  child  of  Samuel  M.  and  Mary 
Jane  Davis,  was  born  in  1851,  but  hved  only  two  days. 

3.  Henry  Davis,  third  child,  was  bom  in  1853,  but 
lived  only  three  months. 

4.  William  Samuel  Davis,  fourth  child,  was  born 
March  21,  1856.  He  is  a  merchant  and  traveling  sales- 
man. He  travels  with  silks  and  velvets  for  Kohn,  Adler, 
and  Company,  Philadelphia.  He  lives  at  Chautauqua, 
N.  Y.,  where  he  and  his  son  are  in  the  dry  goods  busi- 
ness. Mr.  Davis  married  Mary  Jane  Stoopes,  of  New- 
castle, Pa.  They  have  two  children:  James  R.  and 
Alice  L. 

1.  James  Rea  Davis  was  born  June  23,  1888.  He 
took  a  full  course  in  the  public  schools,  being  graduated 
from  the  high  school.  He  is  now  attending  the  Univer- 
sity of  Pennsylvania  in  Philadelphia. 

2.  Alice  Laura  Davis  was  born  July  21,  1893. 

All  of  this  family  are  members  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church. 

H.  Aaron  Stewart  Davis,  fourth  son  of  Patrick  and 
Isabelle  Davis,  was  born  in  Mead  Township,  Crawford 
County,  Pa.,  June  14,  1820,  and  died  in  Meadville,  Pa., 
January  29,  1889. 

Upon  the  completion  of  his  education  he  became  a 
teacher  in  the  schools  of  Crawford  County,  and  subse- 


192  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

quently  established  his  residence  in  Meadville,  the  county 
seat.  He  filled  the  responsible  oflBce  of  Clerk  to  the  Com- 
missioners of  Crawford  County  from  1851  to  1854,  and 
in  1854  was  elected  Register  of  Wills  and  Recorder  of 
Deeds  for  Crawford  County.  Upon  the  expiration  of 
his  term  of  office  he  began  the  study  of  law  in  the  oflSce 
of  Hon.  Gaylord  Church  in  Meadville,  and  was  admitted 
to  the  Bar  of  Crawford  County  in  1861,  from  which  time 
to  his  death  he  engaged  in  the  active  and  successful 
practice  of  his  profession. 

During  his  long  and  honorable  career  at  the  Bar, 
covering  a  period  of  nearly  thirty  years,  he  was  inter- 
ested in  many  business  enterprises  and  assisted  in  the 
development  of  Meadville,  of  which  city  he  was  a  leading 
and  distinguished  citizen  at  the  time  of  his  death.  He 
was  a  democrat  in  politics  and  always  a  strong  and  active 
supporter  of  his  party.  For  many  years  he  was  a  member 
of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  in  Meadville,  later 
transferring  his  membership  to  the  Park  Avenue  Con- 
gregational Church,  in  the  establishment  of  which  he 
was  a  leading  figure,  and  a  trustee  up  to  the  time  of  his 
death. 

Upon  the  death  of  Mr.  Davis,  in  1889,  the  Crawford 
County  Bar  Association,  assembled  in  open  Court,  adopted 
the  following  memorial: 

"Amidst  the  turmoil  of  judicial  business  and  forensic 
conflict  the  Bar  again,  with  deep  sorrow,  suspends  its 
daily  routine,  and  the  court  listens  to  the  announcement 
of  the  death  of  another  of  its  well  known  members  who 
has  answered  the  divine  summons. 

"A.  Stewart  Davis,  Esq.,  a  member  of  this  Bar,  for 
years  in  delicate  health,  burdened  with  complicated 
physical  infirmities,  departed  this  life  at  his  home  early 
on  the  morning  of  January  29,  1889.  He  was  born  in 
what  is  now  known  as  Mead  Township,  Crawford  County, 
on  the  14th  day  of  June,  1820,  of  Scotch-Irish  ancestry. 


V.    PATRICK  193 

from  whom  he  inherited  those  principles  of  economy  and 
industry  that  characterized  his  subsequent  h'fe.  By  per- 
severance and  study,  under  adverse  circumstances,  he 
attained  a  good  EngHsh  education,  quahfying  himself 
for  teaching,  in  which,  for  several  years,  he  was  engaged 
with  eminent  success.  His  educational  preparation  and 
business  capacity  were  recognized  in  his  appointment  to 
the  responsible  position  of  Commissioners'  Clerk  in 
October,  1851,  in  which  he  served  four  years.  In  18o-4 
he  was  elected  and  served  in  the  office  of  Register  and 
Recorder.  At  the  expiration  of  his  term  he  entered  the 
law  office  of  the  Honorable  Gaylord  Church,  and  under 
the  tutelage  and  instruction  of  that  accomplished  law^^'er 
and  jurist  he  was  admitted  to  this  Bar  on  February  ^20, 
1861,  where  his  professional  life  and  achievements  were 
commensurate  with  his  untiring  industry',  legal  acumen, 
and  judicial  skill.  In  business  relations  with  his  asso- 
ciates he  was  pleasant  and  cordial,  in  his  con\'ictions 
firm  and  positive,  and  in  his  judgment  sound  and  cir- 
cumspect. 

"In  his  death  the  Bar  has  lost  a  genial  companion, 
the  court  a  devoted  friend  and  admirer,  the  community 
in  which  he  lived  an  exemplary  citizen,  the  church  of 
which  he  was  so  long  an  honored  member,  his  ardent 
support  and  influence,  and  his  bereaved  family  a  loving 
husband  and  father. 

"Your  committee  therefore  recommend  the  adoption 
of  the  following  resolutions  as  an  expression  of  the  Court 
and  Bar  upon  some  of  the  \'irtues  of  our  deceased 
brother : 

''Resolved,  That  the  lamented  A.  S.  Davis  was  a  la\^yer 
of  abUity,  a  respected  citizen,  and  Christian  gentleman 
of  many  excellences  of  mind  and  heart. 

''Resolved  That  the  Bar,  of  which  he  has  long  been  a 
respected  member,  in  his  death  has  lost  a  congenial 
companion   and   associate;  that  we  ^ill  long  cherish  the 


194  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

memory  of  his  cheering  presence  and  sorrowfully  regret 
this  providential  decree,  to  which  all  must  bow  submis- 
sively. 

''Resolved,  That  as  a  citizen  and  neighbor  he  was 
exemplary  and  generous,  enterprising  and  thrifty,  econ- 
omizing and  industrious;  as  many  of  the  comforts  that 
bless  his  bereaved  'loved  ones'  of  their  now  unhappy 
home  can  attest. 

''Resolved,  We  extend  our  heartfelt  sympathy  and  con- 
dolence to  his  suffering  family  in  their  irreparable  loss, 
and  pray  that  the  blessings  of  Him  that  comforteth  the 
widow  and  orphan  may  sustain  and  console  them  whose 
tender,  loving  ministrations  of  womanly  fidelity  and 
devotion  made  home  for  him  the  dearest  place  on  earth." 

Mr.  Davis  was  married  in  1852  to  Miss  Mary  Wilson, 
of  Meadville,  a  sister  of  Mrs.  Henry  C.  Davis.  Of  this 
union  there  was  one  daughter,  Mary  Florence  Davis, 
who  married  Espy  D.  McClintock,  of  Meadville.  IVIr. 
McClintock  died  December  30,  1879,  and  was  survived 
by  his  wife  and  two  daughters.  Miss  Marion  McClin- 
tock, now  resident  in  New  York,  and  Mrs.  Ethel 
McClintock  Adamson,  the  wife  of  Robert  Adamson, 
of  New  York,  a  prominent  journalist,  and  for  several 
years  one  of  the  political  editors  of  the  New  York  World. 

Mrs.  Mary  Florence  (Davis)  McClintock  was  subse- 
quently married  to  George  F.  May,  of  Atlanta,  Georgia, 
where  she  made  her  home  for  many  years,  later  removing 
to  New  York,  where  she  died  August  14,  1908.  The 
funeral  services  were  held  in  Meadville,  where  the  remains 
are  interred  in  the  family  lot  in  Greendale  Cemetery. 

In  1865,  after  the  death  of  his  first  wife,  A.  Stewart 
Davis  married  Miss  Cassie  L.  Wood,  of  Meadville,  of 
which  union  there  was  one  daughter,  Anna  M.  Davis. 
Mrs.  Davis  died  in  Meadville  March  28,  1899,  and  was 
buried  beside  her  husband  in  the  family  lot  in  Greendale 


V.    PATRICK  195 

Cemetery.  Anna  M.  Davis  was  educated  at  Mt.  Vernon 
Seminaiy  in  Waihington.  D.  C,  and  on  January  6.  189^, 
was  married  in  the  Park  Avenue  Congregational  Church 
to  Col.  Xed  Arden  Flood,  of  Mead\"ille,  the  officiating 
clergymen  being  the  Rev.  Ward  T.  Sutherland,  then 
pastor  of  that  church,  and  Bishop  John  H.  Vincent  of 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  Of  this  union  there 
is  one  daughter,  Josephtsx  Flood.  The  family  resi- 
dence is  on  TValnut  Street  in  Meadville,  Pa. 

Colonel  Flood  is  a  lawyer  with  offices  in  the  Flood 
Building  in  Meadville.  He  is  an  active  practitioner  in 
several  states  chiefly  in  behalf  of  several  large  corpora- 
tions with  which  he  has  professional  and  business 
relations.  He  was  graduated  from  Johns  Hopkins 
University  in  1S90,  received  the  degree  of  Master  of 
Arts  from  Allegheny  College  in  1898,  read  law  with  Hon. 
John  J.  Henderson,  judge  of  the  Superior  Court  of  Penn- 
sylvania, and  was  a  law  student  in  the  University  of 
Michigan,  and  subsequently  admitted  to  practice  at  the 
Pennsylvania  Bar.  For  several  years  following  his  gradu- 
ation from  Johns  Hopkins  University  he  was  associated 
with  his  father,  Dr.  Theodore  L.  Flood,  of  Meadville, 
in  the  publication  of  the  Chautauqua  periodicals,  being 
an  assistant  editor  of  the  Chaidauquan  Magazine  from 
1890  to  1898;  managing  editor  of  the  Chautauqua  Assembly 
Herald  from  1SS9  to  1S9S;  and  superintendent  of  the 
Chautauqua-Century  Press  from  1890  to  1898.  From 
1895  to  1898  Colonel  Flood  was  lecturer  on  Pohtical 
Economy  in  Allegheny  College,  and  in  1898  became  the 
director  of  the  University  Press  of  the  University  of 
Chicago,  with  the  rank  of  associate  professor,  which 
position  he  held  for  three  years,  meanwhile  maintaining 
his  residenc-e  in  Mead^-ille. 

He  resigned  his  University  position  and  relinquished 
a  permanent  academic  career  to  enter  upon  the  active 
practice  of  his  profession.     From  1898  to  1903  he  was  an 


196  THE   DAVIS    FAMILY 

aide-de-camp  on  the  staff  of  Gov.  William  A.  Stone,  of 
Pennsylvania,  with  the  rank  of  lieutenant-colonel,  to 
which  position  he  was  reappointed  in  1903  by  Gov. 
Samuel  W.  Pennypacker,  and  again  reappointed  in  1907 
by  Gov.  Edwin  S.  Stuart,  and  in  which  he  still  continues 
to  serve.  Colonel  Flood  was  President  of  the  North- 
western Pennsylvania  Association  of  Sons  of  Veterans, 
from  1900  to  1902;  President  of  the  Western  Pennsyl- 
vania Alumni  Association  of  Johns  Hopkins  University 
from  1901  to  1902;  a  member  of  the  Meadville  Board  of 
Health  in  1901;  a  member  of  the  Municipal  Board  of 
Water  and  Lighting  Commissioners  of  Meadville  from 
1902  to  1905,  and  in  1904  its  president;  in  1902  he  was 
appointed  by  the  Governor  of  Pennsylvania  a  member 
of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the  State  Hospital  for  the 
Insane  at  Warren,  Pa.,  which  position  he  still  holds, 
having  been  reappointed  at  the  expiration  of  his  first 
term  by  Gov.  Samuel  W.  Pennypacker,  and  later  re- 
appointed by  Gov.  Edwin  S.  Stuart.  He  is  a  member  of 
all  the  leading  societies  and  clubs  in  Meadville,  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and  a  member  of  the  boards 
of  trustees  of  Allegheny  College,  the  Pennsylvania  Col- 
lege of  Music  and  the  Meadville  Commercial  College. 

Colonel  Flood  has  always  been  an  active  adherent  of 
the  Republican  party  in  politics,  and  although  he  has 
never  been  a  candidate  for  public  office,  he  is  widely 
known  as  a  Republican  platform  orator.  In  the  presi- 
dential campaign  of  1904  he  was  pitted  against  ex- 
Governor  Charles  Thomas,  of  Colorado,  in  a  joint  political 
debate  which  opened  the  campaign  in  Colorado,  subse- 
quently stumping  the  state  of  Illinois  for  several  weeks 
with  the  present  governor  of  that  state,  Hon.  Charles  S. 
Deneen,  and  later  occupying  the  platform  in  Pennsyl- 
vania. For  many  years  he  has  been  a  familiar  figure  on 
the  stump  in  the  state  campaigns  in  Pennsylvania,  and 
in  the  last  three  presidential  campaigns  he  was  heard 


MRS.    JEMIMA    DAVIS    POWELL 


V.   PATRICK  197 

throughout  the  country.  Apart  from  pohtical  discussion 
Colonel  Flood  is  widely  and  perhaps  best  known  by  his 
public  addresses  and  lectures  which  have  won  for  him  a 
high  reputation  as  an  accomplished  orator. 

The  years  have  wrought  their  changes.  To-day  the 
only  living  representatives  of  the  direct  line  of  A.  Stewart 
Davis  are  his  daughter,  Mrs.  Ned  Arden  Flood  (Anna 
M.  Davis),  and  his  grandchildren,  Josephine  Flood, 
Maric^^  McClintock,  and  Mrs.  Robert  Adamson 
(Ethel  McClintock). 

/.  Jemima  Davis,  fifth  child  and  only  daughter  of 
Patrick  and  Isabella  Linsley  Davis,  was  born  March 
13,  1822,  and  died  January  30,  1902,  in  her  eightieth 
year.  She  was  married  to  Isaac  Powell,  a  farmer  of 
Cochran  ton.  Pa.,  and  spent  the  remainder  of  her  life  on 
the  old  Powell  homestead,  one  or  two  miles  from  Coch- 
ranton. 

Jemima  Davis  Powell  was  a  very  superior  woman  — 
one  of  the  Mary  Means  type  —  respected  and  admired 
by  all  who  knew  her,  and  worthy  to  be  held  in  everlasting 
remembrance,  because  she  was  a  true,  womanly  woman, 
consecrated  to  Christ  and  to  duty,  rearing  a  large  and 
fine  family,  for  the  benefit  of  the  country  and  of  the 
Church. 

Her  husband,  Isaac  Powell,  of  an  ancient  and  honored 
Welsh  family,  was  the  son  of  Thomas  Powell  and  Isabella 
Fulton,  and  was  born  February  21,  1821.  He  was  of 
Quaker  lineage  on  his  father's  side,  while  his  mother,  a 
bonnie  lass  born  in  County  Tyrone,  Ireland,  was  a  stanch 
Presbyterian. 

Isaac  Powell  and  Jemima  Davis  had  ten  children: 
1.  Thomas  S.,  2.  Mary  I.,  3.  Margaret  J.,  4.  Joseph  A., 
5.  Elizabeth,  6.  Emma  P.,  7.  Florence  A.,  8.  Marion 
I.,  9.  An  infant  unnamed,  living  only  one  day,  10. 
Frank  H. 


198  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

1.  Thomas  Stewart  Powell  was  born  in  1848.  He 
was  a  very  lovely  child,  who  passed  away  at  the  age  of 
two  years  and  a  half. 

2.  Mary  Isabella  Powell  was  born  June  9,  1850, 
received  her  education  in  the  public  schools  and  at  the 
Meadville  Academy,  and  died  January  4,  1908.  She, 
like  her  mother,  was  of  the  Mary  Means  type.  Every- 
body knew  and  loved  her  as  "Miss  Mollie  Powell." 
What  was  said  of  her  at  the  time  of  her  decease  will  be 
well  worth  reading,  especially  by  the  daughters  in  all 
our  families.  "Miss  Powell  became  a  member  of  the 
Cochranton  Presbyterian  Church  early  in  life,  and  was 
always  one  of  the  most  earnest  workers  in  the  church, 
the  Sunday  School,  and  the  various  societies  connected 
therewith,  taking  a  very  active  part  in  the  missionary 
societies,  and  Ladies'  Aid  Society.  It  was  often  said  of 
her  that  her  Christianity  was  of  the  genuine  kind  that 
governed  her  actions  at  all  times  and  gave  her  content- 
ment and  happiness  in  doing  good  and  assisting  others. 

"Miss  Powell  was  known  and  appreciated  by  many 
outside  her  large  circle  of  relatives  and  near  friends,  who 
learned  of  her  death  with  regret,  and  will  remember  her 
as  one  whose  kind  actions  and  good  deeds  will  be  greatly 
missed  in  the  community.  Much  could  be  written  about 
the  extended  influence  of  the  sterling  Christian  life  and 
exemplary  conduct  of  this  good  woman,  but  nothing  we 
can  say  would  add  to  the  high  regard  in  which  she  was 
held  by  all  who  knew  her.  The  family  and  friends  will 
treasure  her  memory  with  the  assurance  that  all  is  well 
with  her." 

3.  Margaret  Jane  Powell  was  born  May  3,  1852. 
On  January  4,  1871,  she  was  married  to  Thomas  Presley 
Moore,  a  farmer  of  Waterford,  Erie  County,  Pa.  They 
lived  at  Waterford  one  year,  and  then  moved  to  Cochran- 


V.    PATRICK  199 

ton.  Pa.  Mr.  Moore  died  June  13,  1882,  leaving  Mrs. 
Moore  and  two  sons,  Hugh  and  Fred.  Mrs.  Moore  is 
a  member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Cochran  ton. 

1.  Hugh  Howard  Moore  was  born  September  19, 
1871.  He  received  his  education  in  the  pubhc  schools, 
and  at  Grove  City  College.  He  is  a  merchant  tailor  in 
Cochranton,  and  is  prospering.  He  married  Cora  Ben- 
nett, of  Meadville.  They  are  members  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church  of  Cochranton.  They  have  a  pleasant 
home,  and  two  children  to  enliven  it. 

(a)  IVIary  Margaret  Moore  was  born  March  11, 
1902. 

(6)    Sarah  Elizabeth  Moore  was  born  June  27,  1907. 

2.  Frederick  Hemerod  Moore  attended  the  public 
schools  and  took  a  business  course  in  the  Commercial 
College  at  Poughkeepsie,  N.  Y.  He  married  Mrs.  Anna 
McDoNOUGH  Rose,  of  Meadville.  They  have  two 
children,  Howard  and  Marion.  Mrs.  Moore  is  a 
member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Cochranton. 
When  I  was  in  Cochranton  in  1908,  Mr.  Moore  was  in 
the  livery  business.  He  had  recently  met  with  the 
misfortune  of  being  burned  out,  losing  barn  and  horses. 
But  he  was  plucky,  was  re-building,  and  going  on  as 
before. 

(a)  Howard  Presley  Moore  was  born  November  6, 
1906. 

(6)    Marion  Moore  was  born  September  20,  1908. 

4.  Joseph  Alexander  Powell  was  born  in  1854,  but 
died  when  he  was  about  three  years  old. 

5.  Elizabeth  Powell  was  born  July  26,  1856.  She 
was  the  constant  companion  of  her  sister.  Miss  Mollie 
Powell,  first  in  the  old  home  on  the  farm,  and  afterward 
in  their  own  home  on  Franklin  Street,  in  Cochranton. 
Like  her  sister,  she  is  a  highly  respected  and  useful  Chris- 


200  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

tian  woman,  being  a  member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church. 
A  multitude  of  friends  are  thankful  that  Miss  Elizabeth 
still  lives,  and  is  active  and  useful. 

6.  Emma  Phebe  Powell  was  born  July  4,  1857.  She 
was  educated  in  the  public  schools  and  was  graduated 
from  Allegheny  College,  Meadville,  Pa.  She  was  teach- 
ing in  Colorado,  when  on  April  16,  1893,  at  Canon  City, 
she  was  married  to  Emanuel  Clay  Tolle,  a  rancher  of 
Pueblo.  Mr.  Tolle  w^as  one  of  the  earliest  pioneers  of 
Pueblo  County.  He  was  born  at  Maysville,  Ky.,  in 
1836,  and  went  to  Colorado  in  1863.  He  became  ex- 
tensively engaged  in  cattle  raising,  and  by  careful  business 
methods  he  acquired  a  large  fortune,  becoming  a  great 
landowner  and  possessing  valuable  city  property.  He 
was  a  good,  kind  husband,  and  enjoyed  the  esteem  and 
respect  of  all  who  knew  him.  He  died  in  1896.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Tolle  had  a  daughter,  named  Dixie  Eva,  so- 
named  by  her  father  who  loved  his  native  Southland. 
"A  sweeter  little  blossom  was  never  sent  from  heaven 
to  gladden  the  hearts  of  her  parents  and  friends"  than 
Dixie  Tolle.  But  at  the  end  of  eighteen  months  it 
pleased  God,  doubtless  for  some  wise  and  gracious  pur- 
pose, to  take  away  this  little  blossom,  this  comfort  and 
joy  of  her  mother,  to  bloom  and  expand  in  a  brighter  and 
better  world. 

Mrs.  Tolle  is  now  the  wife  of  Laurel  Allison  May, 
an  intelligent  gentleman,  of  large  experience,  and  fine 
business  qualities,  having  been  in  railway  service  for  a 
number  of  years.  His  mother  was  a  sister  of  the  dis- 
tinguished United  States  Senator  Allison,  of  Iowa. 

Our  kinswoman,  Mrs.  May,  possessing  a  ranch  of 
twenty-three  thousand  acres,  a  fine  home  and  other 
valuable  city  property,  and  above  all  a  good  husband, 
is  certainly  favored  by  Divine  Providence.  That  she 
may  prove  a  good  stewardess,  live  a  very  happy  life, 


V.   PATRICK  201 

and  do  a  world  of  good  with  the  wealth  God  has  given 
her,  is  the  hope  and  prayer  of  her  many  friends. 

7.  Florence  Ann  Powell  was  born  September  29, 
1858.  After  attending  the  public  schools,  she  became  a 
student  in  the  Meadville  Academy.  On  April  10,  1888, 
she  became  the  wife  of  Charles  Trace,  then  a  farmer 
on  Watson's  Run,  near  Lake  Conneaut.  Their  home  is 
now  in  Franklin,  Pa.,  Mr.  Trace  being  engaged  in  the 
automobile  business.  Their  children  are  Blanche, 
Helen,  and  Harry. 

1.  Blanche  Trace  was  born  April  19,  1891. 

2.  Helen  Trace  was  born  in  May,  1894. 

3.  Harry  Charles  Trace  was  born  November  23, 
1896. 

8.  Marion  Isaac  Powell  was  born  January  10,  1860. 
He  grew  up  on  the  farm,  attending  the  public  schools 
and  later  the  academy  in  Cochran  ton.  He  then  went  to 
Cleveland,  O.,  and  found  employment  in  a  gentleman's 
furnishing  store.  After  two  years  he  married  Rosslene 
Hovis,  of  Youngstown,  O.  He  then  embarked  in  the 
coal  business  with  his  father-in-law,  Mr.  Hovis.  After 
this  he  became  a  member  of  a  hardware  firm.  He  has 
landed  interests  in  Georgia,  and  has  prospered  in  his 
business  enterprises.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Powell  have  had  a 
daughter,  named  Dixie  Tolle  Powell,  born  March  19, 
1895.  They  were  permitted  to  enjoy  so  great  a  treasure 
only  for  a  short  time.  She  died  September  16,  1896. 
They  are  active  and  useful  members  of  the  North  Pres- 
byterian Church  of  Cleveland. 

10.  Frank  Henry  Powell,  the  youngest  of  the  family, 
was  born  October  25,  1868.  He  received  his  education 
in  the  public  schools  and  was  graduated  from  the  Mead- 
ville Commercial  College.     On  October  18,  1893,  he  mar- 


THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

ried  Lavina  Stenger,  from  near  Greenville,  Pa.  To 
them  were  born  three  children: 

(a)   Edith  Powell  was  born  September  4,  1895. 

(6)   Ralph  Powell  was  born  November  26,  1899. 

(c)   Marion  Powell  was  born  December  1,  1903. 

Mr.  Powell  owns  the  old  homestead  farm  near  Coch- 
ranton,  where  he  resides.  Mrs.  Powell,  being  in  ill 
health  for  some  time,  went  in  the  fall  of  1907  to  Pueblo, 
Colo.,  with  the  hope  that  she  might  be  benefited  by  a 
change  of  climate.  Mr.  Powell  joined  her  the  next  year, 
and  was  with  her  till  the  end  came.  For  the  climate  had 
not  proved  as  beneficial  as  it  was  hoped  it  would  be. 
Mrs.  Powell  died  in  St.  Mary's  Hospital  in  October,  1908. 

J.  Joseph  Henry  Davis,  sixth  and  youngest  child  of 
Patrick  and  Isabella  Davis,  was  bo[rn  October  26,  1824, 
and  named  after  two  of  his  uncles  —  brothers  of  his 
father.  He  died  September  23,  1906,  nearly  eighty-two 
years  of  age.  He  married  Esther  Cornelia  Woodruff, 
daughter  of  Dr.  Wm.  Woodruff,  for  a  long  time  a  prom- 
inent physician  of  Meadville.  Their  marriage  took  place 
in  1855.  Early  in  their  wedded  life  they  went  to  Inde- 
pendence, Mo.  They  returned  with  their  family  to 
Crawford  County,  Pa.,  in  1876,  and  settled  on  the  farm 
in  Mead  Township,  where  they  lived  until  the  infirmities 
of  age  led  Mr.  Davis  to  leave  the  farm  in  charge  of  one 
of  his  sons,  while  he  and  Mrs.  Davis  went  to  Meadville. 
They  were  members  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  of 
Meadville,  as  Mrs.  Davis  still  is.  Mr.  Joseph  Davis  was 
a  fine  man,  highly  esteemed  by  all  who  knew  him.  In 
his  later  years  he  was  disabled  by  rheumatism,  moving 
about  in  a  wheel-chair.  He  was  buried  in  Greendale 
Cemetery. 

To  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  were  born  six  children,  as 
follows:  1.  Mary  E.,  2.  Ida,  3.  Charles  S.,  4.  James  H., 
5.  William  W.,  6.  Samuel. 


V.    PATRICK  203 

1.  IVIary  Emma  Davis  was  born  April  18,  1856.  She 
received  a  good  education  and  was  married,  August  14, 
1876,  to  Thomas  Kincaid,  from  near  Pittsburg.  Their 
daughter,  Ella  Kincaid,  was  born  in  June,  1877,  and 
died  in  September,  1878.  Mr.  Kincaid's  health  declining, 
they  went  to  the  salubrious  mountain  region  of  the  West. 
But  all  efforts  to  prolong  his  life  were  vain.  He  died  and 
was  buried  at  Prescott,  Ariz.  Mrs.  Kincaid  then  became 
a  teacher  in  the  public  schools  of  Pueblo,  Colo.  She  was 
a  young  woman  of  very  superior  character  —  a  most  con- 
scientious and  devoted  teacher,  judging  from  the  splendid 
tributes  paid  to  her  character  and  work  by  the  Pueblo 
and   Meadville   papers.     For   hers   was   an  early  death. 

She  was  principal  of  the  South  Pueblo  schools.  She 
became  ill  at  her  post  of  duty  on  Friday,  February  10, 
1882.  Her  illness,  though  very  severe,  was  not  of  long 
duration.  The  end  came  on  the  following  Sabbath  eve- 
ning, when  her  pure  and  sanctified  spirit  went  up  into  the 
presence  of  her  Lord  and  Master,  to  receive  the  reward 
of  the  faithful.  All  Pueblo  seemed  to  feel  and  mourn 
the  loss  of  their  best  teacher.  The  children  lamented 
her  death,  as  though  they  had  lost  their  best  and  dearest 
friend.  The  state  superintendent  gave  to  her  the  meed 
of  highest  praise.  She  was  a  leading  member  of  the  State 
Teachers'  Association.  Her  age  was  only  twenty-five; 
and  what  rendered  her  decease  the  more  sad  was  that 
she  was  engaged  to  be  married  in  a  short  time  to  Judge 
A.  B,  Patton,  a  prominent  citizen  of  Pueblo. 

3.  Ida  Davis  was  born  September  21,  1860.  She 
received  her  education  in  the  public  schools  and  was 
afterward  a  student  and  graduate  of  the  Edinboro  Nor- 
mal School.  She  then  taught  for  some  time,  and  was 
married,  August  27,  1884,  to  A.  B.  Patton,  Esq.,  of 
Pueblo,  Colo.,  the  gentleman  to  whom  her  sister  Emma 
was  engaged  to  be  married  at  the  time  of  her  decease. 


204  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

Judge  Patton  is  a  native  of  Pennsylvania,  in  which 
state  he  was  born  in  1847.  While  he  was  yet  young 
his  parents  moved  to  Iowa.  He  is  a  graduate  of  Iowa 
Wesleyan  College,  studied  law,  and  practised  in  Pueblo, 
Colo.,  for  twenty-two  years.  After  his  marriage  to  our 
cousin,  they  went  to  Ogden,  Utah,  where  for  some  years 
he  was  the  first  Judge  of  the  Juvenile  Court.  He  was 
afterward  appointed  United  States  Commissioner  and 
Referee  in  Bankruptcy.  The  Judge  and  Mrs.  Patton 
still  reside  in  Ogden,  where  they  are  honored  and  loved 
by  all  who  know  them. 

3.  James  Henry  Davis,  the  oldest  son  of  J.  H.  and 
E.  C.  Davis,  was  born  March  22,  1863.  He  died  of  min- 
ing fever  in  a  hospital  in  Boise  City,  Idaho,  in  1889. 
His  brother  Charles  was  with  him  when  he  died. 

4.  Charles  Stewart  Davis,  fourth  child  and  second 
son  of  J.  H.  and  E.  C.  Davis,  went  West  to  be  with  and 
care  for  his  brother  James,  who  was  ill  in  Boise  City, 
Idaho.  After  his  brother's  death  Charles  went  to  Spokane, 
to  settle  up  his  brother's  affairs.  The  family  never  heard 
from  him  again.  But  they  afterward  saw  in  a  Pittsburg 
paper  that  Charles  Davis  had  been  killed  in  jumping 
from  the  window  of  a  burning  hotel  in  Spokane.  They 
have  no  doubt  it  was  their  own  Charles.  It  was  some  time 
in  the  year  1889. 

5.  William  Woodruff  Davis  was  born  July  16,  1867. 
He  grew  up  on  the  farm,  attending  the  public  schools. 
He  married  Catherine  Yocum.  They  have  two  chil- 
dren, Catherine  M.  and  Walter  L. 

Catherine  May  Davis  was  born  February  9, 
1896. 

Walter  Leroy  Davis  was  born  November  19, 
1903. 


VI.   HENRY  205 

When  I  saw  this  family  in  1905  they  were  living  on 
the  old  home  farm  in  Mead  Township.  In  1908  they 
were  Hving  in  Meadville. 

6.  Samuel  Davis,  the  youngest  of  the  family,  was 
born  October  31,  1870.  He  attended  the  pubHc  schools, 
and  also  took  a  course  in  the  Meadville  Commercial 
College.  He  learned  the  trade  of  a  carpenter,  and  is  an 
expert  worker  in  wood.  He  did  all  the  interior  wood- 
work of  the  beautiful  Ford  Memorial  Chapel  of  Allegheny 
College.     His  home  is  with  his  mother  in  Meadville. 


VI.  HENRY 

When  William  Davis,  "the  elder,"  in  1795,  moved  from 
the  farm  in  Franklin  County  to  Allegheny,  afterward 
Crawford  County,  Pa.,  two  of  his  sons,  William  and 
Henry,  remained  in  Franklin  County.  William  bought 
the  farm  and  remained  on  it  as  long  as  he  lived. 

Henry  Davis  was  born  in  Bucks  County,  Pa.,  in 
1770,  was  a  boy  of  fourteen  when  the  family  moved  to 
Franklin  County,  and  when  they  moved  on  farther 
West,  he  remained  behind,  having  married  Margaret, 
daughter  of  Hugh  Wylie,  and  settled  down  in  the  village 
of  Strasburg.  He  spent  his  life  there.  He  was  killed 
by  a  tree  falling  upon  him  —  the  time  not  known.  In 
my  father's  diary  is  the  following  entry:  "June  4,  1823. 
Margaret  Davis,  widow  of  Uncle  Henry  Davis,  was  in- 
terred at  Rocky  Spring,"  from  which  we  learn  that 
Henry  and  his  wife  were  Presbyterians.  They  had  three 
children:  William  Henr¥,  Hugh,  and  Margaret. 

A.  William  Henry  Davis  was  born  November  16, 
1794,  and  died  March  11,  1845.  He  married  Leah 
ScRiBA,  who  was  born  in  Berks  County,  Pa.,  June  2, 
1811.     She  died  May  22,  1897,  in  the  home  of  her  daugh- 


206  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

ter,  Mrs.  E.  R.  Miller,  in  Fannettsburg,  in  which  place 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  had  lived.  Their  children  were 
seven  in  number:  1.  William  H.,  2.  James  V.,  3.  Eliza- 
beth R.,  4.  Mary  E.,  5.  Robert  C,  6.  Mary  C,  7.  Mar- 
garet.    The  last  two  died  in  infancy. 

1.  William  Henry  Davis,  Jr.,  was  born  May  7,  1829. 
He  became  a  blacksmith,  and  married  Ann  R.  Kesel- 
RiNG  August  11,  1857.  At  the  opening  of  the  Civil 
War  he  enlisted  for  three  months  and  afterward  enlisted 
for  three  years  —  two  of  which  he  served  faithfully,  being 
in  several  important  battles.  He  was  a  sergeant  in  the 
Union  army.  In  the  battle  of  Gettysburg  he  received  a 
serious  wound,  in  consequence  of  which  his  third  year 
was  spent  in  the  hospital  at  York,  Pa. 

He  was  not  able  to  work  at  his  trade  after  the  war, 
in  consequence  of  the  wound  received  at  Gettysburg. 
He  was  a  member  of  the  Lutheran  Church.  His  death 
occurred  March  29,  1895.  His  widow,  Mrs.  Ann  K. 
Davis,  who  was  born  November  2,  1839,  is  still  living. 
She  is  a  member  of  the  Reformed  Church,  and  her  home 
is  near  Chambersburg. 

To  Mr.  and  Mrs.  W.  H.  Davis  were  born  eleven  chil- 
dren: 1.  Leah  S.,  2.  Ida  E.,  3.  Mary  J.,  4.  William  S., 
5.  Carrie  B.,  6.  James  L.,  7.  Bertous  E.,  8.  John  R., 
9.  Charles  H.,  10.  Thomas  E.,  11.  Hetty  V. 

1.  Leah  Susan  Davis  was  born  August  23,  1858.  In 
1881  she  was  married  to  Charles  Henry  Lippy.  Their 
children  were  four  in  number:  1.  Beulah  M.,  2.  Mary  B., 
3.  John  H.,  4.  William  D. 

(a)  Beulah  May  Lippy  was  born  November  30,  1881. 
She  became  the  wife  of  George  Rapp,  a  machinist,  and 
had  one  child,  Charles  William  Rapp. 

Mrs.  Lippy  was  a  member  of  the  First  Lutheran  Church 
of  Chambersburg.     She  died  November  29,  1888. 

Mr.   Lippy   is   employed  in   Wolff's  Planing  Mill  in 


VI.    HENRY  207 

Chambersburg,   and  is  a   member  of  Trinity  Lutheran 
Church. 

(6)  IMary  Belle  Lippy  was  born  January  12,  1884, 
and  died  June  13,  1900. 

(c)  John  Henky  Lippy  was  born  January  18,  1886. 
He  is  employed  in  a  shoe  factory  in  Chambersburg. 

(d)  WiLLL\M  Davis  Lippy  was  born  March  12,  1888. 
Both  these  brothers  are  members  of  Trinity  Lutheran 
Church,  Chambersburg,  and  are  industrious  and  well- 
doing young  men. 

2.  Ida  Ellen  Davis  was  born  April  19,  1860.  She 
was  married  to  John  Henry  Rudolph,  whose  home  was 
in  Colorado.  They  moved  to  San  Diego,  Cal.,  where  they 
are  now  living. 

3.  Mary  Jane  Davis  was  born  January  21,  1862. 
She  became  the  wife  of  Frank  Hetrick,  an  electrician, 
who  died  September  14,  1905.  Their  children  were 
thirteen  in  number:  1.  Ruth  B.,  2.  Inez  E.,  3.  Benjamin 
F.,  4.  Bertous  D.,  5.  William  H.,  6.  James  V.,  7.  Anna 
v.,  8.  Ida  V.,  9.  Mary  C,  10.  Edna  H.,  11.  George  W., 
12.  Beulah  J.,  13.  Herbert  V. 

(a)  Ruth  Belle  Hetrick  was  born  April  8,  1881, 
and  died  August  14,  1896. 

(b)  Inez  Elizabeth  Hetrick  was  born  February  1, 
1883.  She  is  the  wife  of  Charles  Waltrick,  and  they 
live  in  Chambersburg,  where  Mr.  Waltrick  is  employed 
in  Wolff's  Planing  Mill. 

(c)  Benjamin  Franklin  Hetrick  was  born  July  5, 
1887.  He  lives  in  Chambersburg,  and  is  in  the  service 
of  the  Cumberland  Valley  railroad  company. 

(d)  Bertous  Davis  Hetrick  was  born  July  5,  1887. 
He  married  Fanny  Ferrence.  They  have  a  son,  Le 
Roy  Ferrence  Hetrick.  Their  home  is  in  York,  Pa., 
where  ]\Ir.  Hetrick  is  a  lineman  on  a  railroad. 

(e)  William  Henry  Hetrick  was  born  December  10, 
1889.     He  enlisted  in  the  United  States  Navy  May  3, 


208  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

1908,  and  was  sent  to  San  Francisco  to  join  the  great 
fleet  of  battle-ships,  then  making  a  tour  round  the 
world. 

(/)  James  Vanlear  Hetrick  was  born  May  7,  1891. 

(g)  Anna  Viola  Hetrick  was  born  February  23,  1893. 
She  graduated  from  the  Chambersburg  High  School  in 
1910,  and  is  a  member  of  the  Lutheran  Church. 

(h)  Ida  Virginia  Hetrick  was  born  May  5,  1895. 

(i)  Mary  Caroline  Hetrick  was  born  January  30, 
1897. 

(j)  Edna  Hulda  Hetrick  was  born  October  12,  1899. 

(k)  George  William  Hetrick  was  born  October  25, 
1901. 

(Z)  Beulah  Jean  Hetrick  was  born  November  25, 
1903. 

(m)  Herbert  Victor  Hetrick  was  born  January  25, 
1905. 

4.  William  Scriba  Davis  was  born  October  8,  1865. 
He  married  Bertha  M.  Embich  April  8, 1893.  Mr.  Davis 
died  December  2,  1902. 

5.  Carrie  Belle  Davis  was  born  June  2,  1868,  and 
died  November  5,  1895. 

6.  James  Lawrence  Davis  was  born  January  22, 
1871,  and  died  in  infancy. 

7.  Bertous  Eberly  Davis  was  born  March  10,  1872. 
He  married  Ida  Dorner  in  1893.  They  have  two  chil- 
dren: William  E.  and  Helen  M. 

(a)  William  Eberly  Davis  was  born  February  25, 
1894. 

(6)   Helen  May  Davis  was  born  June  11,  1896. 

8.  John  Robert  Davis  was  born  August  1,  1874, 
and  died  on  August  8. 

9.  Charles  Henry  Davis  was  born  August  5,  1875, 
and  was  killed  by  a  tree  falling  on  him  August  19,  1890. 
He  was  a  cripple  and  was  gathering  kindling  to  sell,  when 
he  was  caught  by  a  tree  which  men  were  felling.     They 


VI.    HENRY  209 

cried  out  to  him,  but  it  was  too  late.  He  could  not  run 
fast  enough  to  escape. 

10.  Thomas  Elmer  Davis  was  born  February  13, 
1877.  He  married  Ida  Bowers  April  14,  1903.  They 
have  three  children:  Thomas  E.,  Daniel  H.,  and  Ida  M. 

(a)  Thomas  Elmer  Davis,  Jr.,  was  born  April  26, 1904. 
(6)  Daniel  Harold  Davis  was  born  August  22,  1906. 
(c)    Ida  IVIay  Davis  was  born  September  19,  1908. 

11.  Hetty  Virginia  Davis  was  born  April  21,  1880, 
and  died  October  12,  1904.  She  was  a  member  of  the 
Reformed  Church. 

2.  J.\JViEs  Vanlear  Davis,  second  child  of  W.  H.  and 
Leah  S.  Davis,  was  born  March  30,  1833.     On  September 

5,  1856,  he  married  Elizabeth  C.  Beard,  who  died 
October  20,  1859,  leaving  two  children:  Jonathan  W. 
and  Robert  B.  Mr.  Davis  married  a  second  time, 
October  15,  1862.  The  lady's  name  was  Isabel  Ker 
Montague,  who  died  January  16,  1892.  Mr.  Davis 
married  again  February  22,  1894.  The  bride's  name  was 
Jennie  E.  Harris.  Mr.  Davis  was  paralyzed,  and  de- 
parted this  life  September  30,  1900.  His  occupation  was 
that  of  an  undertaker  and  dealer  in  furniture.  His  widow 
is  keeping  house  for  her  brother,  W.  E.  Harris,  in  Wash- 
ington, Pa.     She  is  a  member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church. 

1.  Jonathan  William  Davis,  elder  son  of  James  V. 
and  Elizabeth  B.  Davis,  was  born  January  20,  1858. 
He  grew  up  in  Fannettsburg,  and  married  Amanda 
Markward  Foreman  June  22,  1882.  They  live  in 
Newport,  Pa.,  where  Mr.  Davis  is  in  business,  dealing 
in  stoves,  furnaces,  etc.  The  firm  is  J.  W.  Davis  &  Son. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  have  had  six  children:  1.  James  M., 
2.  Robert  W.,  3.  George  F.,  4.  William  V.,  5.  John  F., 

6.  Mary  C. 

(a)  James  Montague  Davis  was  born  April  16,  1883, 
and  died  November  29,  1893. 


210  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

(6)  Robert  Wylie  Davis  was  born  January  2,  1886. 

(c)  George  Foreman  Davis  was  bom  July  23,  1887. 

(d)  William  Vanlear  Davis  was  born  November  1, 
1890. 

(e)  John  Floyd  Davis  was  born  May  1,  1896. 

(/)  Mary  Catharine  Davis  was  born  September  1, 
1898. 

2.  Robert  Beard  Davis,  second  son  of  James  V.  and 
E.  B.  Davis,  was  born  October  14,  1859.  He  has  always 
lived  in  Fannettsburg.  On  March  23,  1893,  he  married 
Emma  A.  Mears  of  Mechanicsburg,  Pa.  They  have  had 
four  children:  1.  Mary  C,  2.  Samuel  A.,  3.  Robert  K., 
4.  John  K. 

(a)  Mary  Catherine  Davis  was  born  June  27,  1899. 
(6)  Samuel  Albert  Davis  was  born  December  21, 
1903. 

(c)  Robert  Kenneth  Davis  (a  twin)  was  born  De- 
cember 21,  1903,  and  lived  only  two  weeks. 

(d)  John  Keith  Davis  was  born  November  29,  1906. 

Mr.  Davis  succeeded  his  father  in  the  furniture  busi- 
ness, and  as  an  undertaker.  He  is  one  of  the  trustees 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  of  which  he  and  Mrs.  Davis 
are  members. 

3.  Elizabeth  Rebecca  Davis,  third  child  and  eldest 
daughter  of  W.  H.  and  Leah  Davis,  was  born  January 
24,  1838,  and  was  married  to  George  A.  Miller,  of  Fan- 
nettsburg, December  10,  1857.  Mr.  Miller  had  a  good 
common-school  education.  For  many  years  he  was 
engaged  in  selling  sewing-machines  and  organs.  In  the 
latter  part  of  his  life  he  was  engaged  in  the  shoe  business. 
During  the  War  for  the  Union,  he  served  two  enlistments 
—  one  as  drum-major  of  the  126th  Pennsylvania  Regi- 
ment of  Volunteers  —  and  a  second,  as  a  private  in  a 
signal  corps.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Lower  Path  Valley 
Presbyterian  Church,  and  died  February  10,  1885. 


VI.    HENRY  211 

Mrs.  Miller  united  with  the  Lower  Path  Valley  Pres- 
byterian Church  in  1857,  during  a  "communion  season," 
when  the  editor  of  this  book  was  assisting  the  pastor, 
Rev.  J.  Smith  Gordon.  She  survived  her  husband  many 
years,  passing  away  July  21,  1910,  in  her  seventy-third 
year.  Mrs.  Miller  was  a  truly  consistent  member  of 
the  church,  being  always  regarded  as  one  of  the  best 
women  in  the  community. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Miller  had  seven  children:  1.  Charles  F., 

2.  Margaret  B.,  3.  Caroline  E.,  4.  Laura  E.,  5.  Eliza- 
beth D.,  6.  Adolphus  a.,  7.  IVIary  S. 

1.  Charles  Fremont  Miller  was  born  December  12, 
1858.  He  had  a  good  common-school  education.  He 
has  lived  all  his  life  in  Fannettsburg,  and,  as  he  says, 
has  "run  a  little  shoe  business  from  his  boyhood."  He 
has  been  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  three  terms  of  five 
years  each.  He  was,  when  he  wrote  to  me,  assistant- 
sergeant-at-arms  of  the  House  of  Representatives  of 
Pennsylvania.  He  married  Blanche  Virginia  Cowan, 
of  Fort  Lyttleton,  Fulton  County,  Pa.  They  are  both 
members  of  the  Lower  Path  Valley  Presbyterian  Church, 
and  have  had  eight  children:  1.  Emma  V.,  2.  Frances  R., 

3.  Minnie  L.,  4.  William  C,  5.  Thomas  E.,  G.  Ruth  E., 
7.  Mary  V.,  8.  Charles  F. 

(a)  Emma  Viola  Miller  was  born  December  17, 
1882.  She  received  the  usual  education  in  the  public 
schools,  and  united  with  the  Lower  Path  Valley  Pres- 
byterian Church  in  early  life.  She  was  married  to 
Charles  McCurdy  Milbee,  of  Chambersburg,  Pa.,  who 
was  a  member  of  the  United  Brethren  Church.  Mrs. 
Milbee  transferred  her  membership  to  the  same  church. 
They  have  two  children,  Charles  Frederick  Milbee 
and  Elizabeth  Milbee. 

(6)  Frances  Rebecca  Miller  was  born  January  3, 
1886.  She  was  baptized  by  the  Rev.  J.  Smith  Gordon, 
and  died  March  28,  1893. 


212  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

(c)  Minnie  Larue  Miller  was  born  February  14, 
1888,  became  a  member  of  the  church  afore  mentioned 
at  an  early  age,  was  graduated  from  the  Township  High 
School,  and  then  attended  Wilson  College  at  Chambers- 
burg  for  a  year. 

(d)  William  Clarence  Miller  was  born  September 
11,  1890.  When  I  heard  from  the  family,  he  was  at 
home  and  aiming  at  graduation  from  the  Township  High 
School, 

(e)  Thomas  Ellsworth  Miller  was  born  November 
27,  1892.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Lower  Path  Valley 
Presbyterian  Church,  and  when  last  heard  from  was  still 
in  school. 

(/)  Ruth  Elizabeth  Miller  was  born  December  28, 
1895,  and  is  attending  school. 

(g)  Mary  Virginia  Miller  was  born  September  3, 
1899. 

(h)  Charles  Franklin  Miller  was  born  January  17, 
1902. 

2.  Margaret  Bell  Miller,  second  child  of  George 
A.  and  E.  R.  Miller,  was  born  September  15,  1861.  She 
became  the  wife  of  John  E.  Speck,  a  farmer,  living  near 
Burnt  Cabins,  Fulton  County,  Pa. 

3.  Caroline  Elliott  Miller,  third  child  of  G.  A. 
and  E.  R.  Miller,  was  born  January  3,  1864.  She  is  con- 
ducting a  confectionery  and  grocery  store  at  Struthers,  O. 

4.  Laura  Ellen  Miller,  fourth  child  of  the  same 
parents,  was  born  August  27,  1868.  She  is  the  wife  of 
Charles  Wehn,  who  is  in  the  service  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Railroad  Company.  He  was  born  near  Lewistown,  Pa., 
April  24,  1873.  Their  home  is  in  Huntingdon,  Pa.  They 
are  both  members  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 
They  have  three  children,  all  born  in  Huntingdon. 
Mary  Rebecca  Wehn  was  born  August  22,  1896,  Ruth 
Delvina  Wehn  was  born  April  3,  1900,  and  Margaret 
Catherine  Wehn  was  born  July  9,  1905. 


VI.    HENRY  213 

5.  Elizabeth  Davis  Miller,  fifth  child  in  the  family, 
was  born  April  12,  1870.  In  1893  she  was  married  to  J. 
MacStinger,  who  lived  in  the  neighborhood  of  Fan- 
nettsburg.  Mrs.  Stinger  was  a  consistent  Christian 
woman,  having  become  a  member  of  the  Lower  Path 
Valley  Presbyterian  Church  in  her  girlhood.  She  was 
called  up  to  another  and  better  world  August  8,  1897. 

6.  Adolphus  Andrew  Miller,  second  son  in  this 
family,  was  born  November  20,  1873.  He  became  a 
stone-cutter  and  bricklayer,  and  married  Mrs.  Lydia 
Davis,  of  Altoona,  Pa.  Three  children  were  born  to 
them,  named  Paul,  Carl,  and  Thomas.  Their  home 
was  in  Altoona,  where  Mr.  Miller  died  November  24,  1904. 

7.  Mary  Scriba  Miller,  the  youngest  of  the  family, 
was  born  December  23,  1875.  She  became  the  wife  of 
Mr.  Naugle,  of  Burnt  Cabins,  Pa.  Mrs.  Naugle  is  a 
member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  that  place.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Naugle  have  four  children,  as  follows: 

(a)  Harvey  Edgar  Naugle  was  born  in  February, 
1898. 

(6)  Gerald  Early  Naugle  was  born  in  September, 
1900. 

(c)  Clarence  Adolphus  Naugle  was  born  in  May, 
1903. 

(d)  Margaret  Elizabeth  Naugle  was  born  in  June, 
1909. 

4.  Mary  Ellen  Davis,  fourth  child  and  second  daugh- 
ter of  W.  H.  and  Leah  Davis,  was  born  June  5,  1840,  in 
Strasburg.  She  went  with  her  mother  in  1858  to  live 
in  Fannettsburg.  She  was  a  member  of  the  Evangelical 
Lutheran  Church  at  Strasburg,  but  she  transferred  her 
membership  to  the  Presbyterian  Church  at  Fannettsburg. 
On  December  29,  1859,  she  was  married,  by  Rev.  J.  S. 
Gordon,  to  Samuel  Allison  Gamble. 

Mr.  Gamble  was  born  in  Path  Valley,  January  4,  1834. 


214  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

He  learned  the  trade  of  a  carpenter  —  but  for  nearly 
thirty  years  past  he  has  been  farming.  He  is  a  member 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church  and  also  a  trustee.  During 
the  war  for  the  Union,  Mr.  Gamble  served  for  fifteen 
months  in  Company  I,  201st  Regiment,  Pennsylvania 
Volunteer  Infantry. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Gamble  have  had  ten  children,  as  fol- 
lows: 1.  William  E.,  2.  Mary  C,  3.  Eliza  A.,  4.  Oliver 
J.,  5.  Leah  S.,  6.  Charlotte  B.,  7.  Samuel  A.,  8.  Robert 
D.,  9.  Caroline  M.,  10.  Hetty  V. 

1.  William  Elmer  Gamble  was  born  August  29,  1861. 
He  has  been  married  twice.  His  first  wife  was  Ida 
Stinger.  They  had  three  children.  His  second  wife 
was  Martha  Reed,  of  Doylesburg,  Pa.  The  family  live 
in  Doylesburg.  Mr.  Gamble  is  a  laboring  man.  The 
family  attend  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  of  which 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Gamble  are  members. 

2.  Mary  Catherine  Gamble  was  born  October  29, 
1863.  In  1886  she  was  married  to  Theodore  Rosen- 
berry,  a  farmer.  Mrs.  Rosenberry  is  a  member  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church. 

3.  Eliza  Ann  Gamble  was  born  September  7,  1869. 
She  became  the  wife  of  Hezekiah  Edmundson,  a  laborer. 
They  have  four  children — two  boys  and  two  girls.  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Edmundson  are  members  of  the  Presbyterian  Church. 

4.  Oliver  James  Gamble  was  born  October  12,  1875. 
In  1903  he  married  Nancy  C.  Creager.  Mr.  Gamble  is 
farming  in  Montgomery  Township,  Franklin  County.  Mrs. 
Gamble  is  a  member  of  the  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church. 

5.  Leah  Scriba  Gamble  was  born  April  9,  1878.  She 
became  the  wife  of  John  Woods,  a  farmer.  They  have 
two  children  —  a  son  and  a  daughter.  Mrs.  Woods  is 
a  member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church. 

6.  Charlotte  Bell  Gamble  was  born  March  13, 
1879.  On  October  12,  1904,  she  was  married  to  George 
W.  Cramer,  a  farmer.     They  have  a  daughter  —  Helen 


VI.    HENRY  215 

M.  Cramer  —  born  May  24,  1908.     IMrs.  Cramer  is  a 
member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church. 

7.  Samuel  Allison  G-^ible,  Jr.,  was  born  August  8, 
1880.  He  married  Harriet  Fleagle  in  1901.  They 
have  two  children:  a  son  and  a  daughter.  ]Mr.  Gamble 
is  a  laborer. 

8.  Robert  Davis  G.amble  was  born  January  9,  1883, 
but  died  when  only  three  years  old. 

9.  Caroline  ]VL\y  Gamble  was  born  May  30,  1885. 
She  became  the  wife  of  Ajmos  Rosenberry  November 
24,  1905.  They  have  three  children — Alfred  Alhson 
aged  five  years,  Mary  Jane  aged  three  years,  and  an 
infant  daughter — Clara  Dell.  !Mr.  Rosenberry  was  born 
January  23,  1874.  Mrs.  Rosenberry  is  a  member  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church. 

10.  Hetty  Virginia  Gamble  was  born  April  23,  1887. 
She  became  the  wife  of  C.  T.  Hess.  To  them  was  born, 
in  1906,  a  son  named  B.  F.  Hess,  who  died  in  September, 
1908.  ^Ir.  and  IMrs.  Hess  are  members  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church. 

5.  Robert  Cuxntngham  Davis,  the  fifth  child  and 
third  son  of  W.  H.  and  Leah  S.  Davis,  was  born  March 
12,  1843.  At  the  opening  of  the  Civil  War,  when  he  was 
only  eighteen,  he  volunteered,  entered  the  army,  and 
served  with  distinguished  merit  throughout  that  terrific 
struggle.  He  was  wounded  in  one  of  the  battles,  and 
was  a  cripple  ever  afterward.  He  was  a  prisoner  for 
some  time  on  Belle  Isle.  After  the  war  he  traveled  over 
many  states.  He  acquired  land  in  Kansas,  and  in  Ala- 
bama. He  died  in  a  hospital  in  Chicago,  December  24, 
1882.  His  papers  and  all  his  belongings  were  stolen. 
Says  Mr.  R.  B.  Davis,  "We  could  find  nothing  whatever." 

B.  Hugh  Davis,  second  son  of  Henry  and  Margaret 
Da\^s,  was  born  in  Upper  Strasburg,  Franklin  County, 


216  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

Pa.,  May  20,  1802.  He  went  to  Knox  County,  O.,  in 
1820.  He  appears  to  have  begun  while  there  learning 
the  trade  of  a  tanner.  He  returned  to  Pennsylvania  in 
the  following  year,  and  completed  the  learning  of  his 
trade.  He  returned  to  Mt.  Vernon,  O.,  in  1827,  where 
he  lived  for  some  time  working  for  James  Loverage  and 
Samuel  Trimble,  who  were  tanners.  On  March  28,  1828, 
he  married  Martha  Skinner  Morrow,  of  Chambersburg, 
Pa.  In  1829  he  located  in  Ashland,  O.,  having  purchased 
a  property  in  the  east  end  of  the  town.  On  this  he  erected 
a  tannery,  and  the  next  year  began  the  two-fold  business 
of  tanning  and  harness-making.  This  he  continued  very 
successfully  }intil  the  year  1858,  when  he  had  a  stroke 
of  paralysis,  which  disabled  him.  He  was  a  sufferer, 
unable  to  help  himself  for  many  years,  and  died  June 
13,  1876.  His  death  was  hastened  by  a  fall  on  the  floor. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  were  members  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  of  Hopewell,  in  the  vicinity  of  Ashland,  of  which 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Moody  was  pastor.  The  following  obituary 
notice  appeared  as  an  editorial  in  an  Ashland  paper: 
"On  Tuesday  last  there  passed  away  from  earth  one  of 
our  oldest  citizens,  Mr.  Hugh  Davis,  in  the  seventy- 
fourth  year  of  his  age.  Mr.  Davis  had  been  a  sufferer 
for  eighteen  years  with  paralysis,  unable  to  move  without 
assistance,  and  demanding  constant  attention.  But  his 
afflictions  were  borne  with  patient  resignation  and  Chris- 
tian fortitude  seldom  equalled.  He  passed  away  without 
a  struggle;  the  stalwart  frame  was  worn  out,  and  the 
springs  of  life  and  action  quietly  ran  down  and  stopped 
without  a  jar.  His  funeral  took  place  on  Thursday,  and 
was  largely  attended.     Peace  to  the  good  old  man!" 

Martha  Skinner  Morrow  was  the  daughter  of  Wilson 
Morrow,  Esq.,  a  prominent  citizen  of  Chambersburg,  Pa., 
and  was  born  December  12,  1803.  After  raising  a  family 
of  seven  children,  and  waiting  on  a  helpless  husband  for 
twelve  years  with  the  utmost  patience  and  fidelity,  she 


Yl.    HENRY  217 

passed  away  from  her  home  in  Ashland  to  a  better  home 
on  high,  April  8,  1870. 

!Mr.  and  [Mrs.  Hugh  Davis  had  the  following  children: 
1.  Morrow  H.,  '2.  Lester  F.,  3.  Justus  W.,  4.  Sylvaxus 
C,  5.  Josephine  A.,  6.  Ilger  V.,  7.  Martha  E. 

1.  Morrow  Henry  Davis  was  born  December  29, 
1829.  He  married  ^Lvrtha  An*n  Morrow,  of  Chambers- 
bm-g.  Pa.,  April  1,  1851.  That  same  year,  in  company 
with  his  brother  Lester,  and  George  W.  L'rie,  of  Ashland, 
he  went  to  California,  and  stopped  in  Xapa,  not  far  north 
of  San  Francisco.  He  and  his  brother  di\'ided  their 
attention  between  mining  and  farming.  In  1854  he 
A^isited  Ashland,  and,  with  wife  and  child,  returned  the 
same  year  to  Xapa,  where  he  gave  himself  to  the  business 
of  tanning,  which  he  had  learned  under  his  father  at  home. 
This  business  he  pursued  successfully  for  many  years. 
He  is  now  h\'ing  at  Xapa,  in  a  good  old  age. 

Martha  Ann  Morrow,  his  faithful  and  beloved  wife, 
was  born  in  Chambersburg,  Pa.,  March  12,  1831,  and 
died  at  Elk  Grove,  Cal.,  February  t22,  1898,  in  her  sixty- 
eighth  year. 

^Lr.  and  !Mrs.  Morrow  Da\'is  had  eight  children:  1. 
Eldor-U)0  W.,  2.  Arthur  L.,  3.  Allison  V.,  4.  Irene  E., 
5.  Eugene  A.,  6.  Elba  E.,  7.  Josephin*e  M.,  8.  X'ellie. 
All  except  the  first  were  bom  near  Sacramento. 

1.  Eldor-ado  Wilson  Davis  was  bom  in  Ashland,  O., 
February  10,  1852.  His  life,  after  two  years  of  age,  was 
spent  in  California.  His  chosen  vocation  was  that  of  a 
musician.  He  died  April  12,  1884,  lea\-ing  a  son,  Hugh 
Wilson  Davis. 

2.  Arthur  Lester  Davis  was  bom  December  17, 
1856.  He  became  a  rancher  and  miner,  and  never  mar- 
ried. He  died  at  Elk  Grove,  May  28,  1894,  in  his  thirty- 
eighth  year. 

3.  Allison  Vanlear  Davis,  a  twin  brother  of  Arthur 


218  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

L.,  was  born  December  17,  1856,  and  died  at  Elk  Grove, 
July  7,  1862,  in  his  sixth  year. 

4.  Irene  Estella  Davis  was  born  September  9, 
1859.  On  November  29,  1877,  she  was  married  to 
Edward  Lanham  Coons. 

E.  L.  Coons  was  born  in  St.  Louis,  Mo.  His  occupa- 
tion is  that  of  a  hop-grower.  The  home  of  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Coons  is  near  Elk  Grove,  Cal.  They  have  had  seven 
children:  1.  An  infant  that  died  at  birth,  2.  an  infant 
that  died  at  birth,  3.  Harry  L.,  4.  Edward  W.,  5.  Lillie 
I.,  6.  Lloyd  E.,  7.  Lowell  C. 

(a)  Harry  Lanham  Coons  was  born  in  Sacramento, 
February  28,  1884. 

(6)  Edward  Wilson  Coons  was  born  in  Sacramento, 
December  24,  1886,  and  died  February  3,  1887. 

(c)  Lillie  Irene  Coons  was  born  at  Elk  Grove,  June 
14,  1890. 

(d)  Lloyd  Elba  Coons  was  born  at  Elk  Grove,  Octo- 
ber 14,  1892. 

(e)  Lowell  Cutler  Coons  was  born  at  Elk  Grove, 
September  9,  1893. 

5.  Eugene  Augustus  Davis,  a  twin  brother  of  Irene 
Estella,  was  born  September  9,  1859.  He  is  a  rancher, 
and  has  never  married. 

6.  Elba  Elbison  Davis  was  born  January  5,  1861. 
He  married  Serena  Kennedy  in  1889.  He  died  October 
25,  1892,  leaving  a  widow  and  one  child, 

7.  Josephine  Martha  Davis  was  born  in  1863.  On 
April  7,  1891,  she  was  married  to  John  Albert  Green. 
Mr.  Green  was  born  in  Petaluma,  Cal.,  January  21,  1860. 
He  is  a  druggist  in  the  city  of  Sacramento. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Green  have  two  children: 

(a)  Roy  Albert  Green  was  born  in  Sacramento,  May 
13,  1897. 

(6)  Thomas  Morrow  Green  was  born  in  Sacramento, 
June  1,  1904. 


VI.    HENRY  219 

8.  Nellie  Davis  was  born  October  10,  1866.  On 
March  12,  1890,  she  was  married  to  Charles  Stuart 
Chalmers,  who  was  born  in  Chatham,  Can,,  February 
28,  1867.  He  is  a  farmer  and  hop-grower,  and  hves 
near  Elk  Grove.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Chalmers  have  three 
children,  all  born  near  Elk  Grove:  Rollo  H.,  Arthur 
W.,  and  Harriet  M. 

(a)  Rollo  Hugh  Chalriers  was  born  December  24, 
1890. 

(6)  Arthur  Wilson  Chalmers  was  born  January  6, 
1892. 

(c)  Harriet  Martha  Chalmers  was  born  May  4, 
1896. 

2.  Lester  Finley  Davis,  second  son  of  Hugh  and  M. 
S.  Davis,  was  born  in  Ashland,  O.,  May  14,  1831.  He 
went  to  California  with  his  brother  Morrow  in  1851. 
For  some  time  they  farmed  and  mined,  but  they  after- 
wards settled  in  Napa,  Morrow  as  a  tanner,  and  Lester 
as  a  butcher.  On  March  17,  1872,  he  married  Susan 
Rosa  Allen,  of  Napa.  She  was  the  daughter  of  G.  W. 
Allen,  and  was  born  in  Monterey,  Cal.,  January  6,  1855. 
They  subsequently  went  to  San  Francisco,  where  they 
and  their  children  are  still  living.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Lester 
Davis  have  had  eight  children.  Of  these  four  died  young. 
The  other  four,  all  bom  in  Napa,  are  as  follows: 

1.  Martha  Anna  Davis  was  born  in  1874.  On  No- 
vember 13,  1891,  she  was  married  to  John  William  Bris- 
TOWE,  a  shipping-clerk.  Their  home  is  in  San  Francisco. 
They  have  three  children: 

(a)  Beverly  Bristowe  was  born  in  1893. 
(6)  Lester  Bristowe  was  born  in  1896. 
(c)  Cuthbert  Bristowe  was  born  in  1898. 

2.  Hugh  Bert  Davis  was  born  in  1877.  His  business 
is  that  of  a  cooper. 

3.  William  Edward  Davis  was  born  in  1881.    He 


220  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

is  a  railroad  conductor.  On  January  14,  1902,  he  mar- 
ried Isabella  Mildred  Hardesty,  daughter  of  George 
and  Emma  Viola  Hardesty. 

4.   George  Lester  Davis,  born  in  1885,  is  a  butcher. 

3.  Justus  Wilson  Davis,  third  son  of  Hugh  and 
Martha  S.  Davis,  was  born  in  Ashland,  O.,  April  13, 
1833,  on  the  same  lot  on  which  he  now  resides.  He  has 
the  distinction  of  being  the  oldest  native-born  citizen  of 
Ashland.  The  old  tan-yard  has  disappeared,  but  Mr. 
Davis  has  continued  in  the  business  of  harness-making. 
On  November  11,  1857,  he  married  Catherine  Jane 
Trimble,  of  Mt.  Vernon,  O.  She  was  the  daughter  of 
Thomas  Trimble,  Esq.,  of  Carlisle,  Pa.,  where  she  was 
born  October  31,  1838.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  are  members 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  and  have  three  children: 
Horace  U.,  Thomas  T.,  and  Mary  E. 

1.  Horace  Urie  Davis  was  born  January  31,  1861. 
Like  his  father,  he  is  a  harness-maker.  He  is  a  member 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Ashland. 

2.  Thomas  Trimble  Davis  was  born  September  17, 
1870.  He  received  his  education  in  the  public  schools, 
being  graduated  from  the  high  school.  On  October  25, 
1897  he  married  Eva  Elizabeth  Markley,  daughter  of 
John  Markley  of  Ashland.  She  was  born  August  25, 
1873.  The  newly- wedded  couple  went  to  Cleveland 
where  they  resided  for  eight  years,  Mr.  Davis  being  in 
the  employ  of  the  Standard  Sewing  Machine  Company. 
They  then  returned  to  Ashland,  where  he = engaged  for  a 
time  in  the  real -estate  business.  He  is  now  in  the  serv- 
ice of  the  F.  E.  Myers  &  Brothers  Company,  in  the  pump 
and  haying  tools  business. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  have  two  children:  Helen  C.  and 
Martha  L. 

(a)  Helen  Catherine  Davis  was  born  in  Cleveland, 
O.,  September  29,  1898. 


VI.    HENRY  221 

(6)  Martha  Louisa  Davis  was  born  in  Cleveland,  O., 
June  9,  1901. 

They  are  baptized  children  of  the  Covenant,  their 
parents  being  active  members  of  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church.  The  two  girls  are  specially  endowed  with 
musical  talent.  Their  father  is  a  member  of  the  choir 
of  the  church.  The  most  out-of-the-ordinary  incident 
in  the  life  of  T.  T.  Davis  was  his  riding,  while  he  was 
still  quite  a  youth,  from  Ashland  to  Washington,  D.  C, 
on  one  of  the  old-fashioned  high-wheel  bicycles. 

3.  IVIary  Ellen  Davis  was  born  April  24,  1875.  She 
took  the  regular  course  in  the  public  schools,  being  gradu- 
ated from  the  high  school.  She  is  a  very  excellent  young 
lady,  being  an  interested  and  active  member  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church.  She  has  paid  special  attention  to 
music,  and  cultivated  her  natural  talent,  so  as  to  be  use- 
ful as  an  organist  at  religious  services.  She  is  president 
of  the  Young  Ladies'  Missionary  Society. 

4.  Sylvanus  Curtis  Davis,  fourth  son  of  Hugh  and 
Martha  S.  Davis,  was  born  December  16,  1835.  He 
became  a  farmer,  and  lived  near  Redhaw,  Ashland  County. 
He  never  married.  In  his  seventieth  year,  July  3,  1905, 
he  was  struck  by  lightning  and  instantly  killed. 

5.  Josephine  Agnes  Davis,  fifth  child  of  Hugh  and 
Martha  S.  Davis,  was  born  May  21,  1837,  and  died  in 
her  thirteenth  year,  December  19,  1849. 

6.  Ilger  Vanlear  Davis,  fifth  son  of  Hugh  and 
Martha  S.  Davis,  was  born  December  24,  1838.  He 
became  a  farmer,  and  married  Susan  Snowberger,  of 
Redhaw,  September  22,  1861.  Mrs.  Davis  is  a  member 
of  the  Dunkard  Church.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  have  one 
child:  Charles  E. 

1.    Charles  Ellsworth  Davis  was  born  September  3, 


222  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

1862.  On  January  29,  1903,  he  married  Louise  Rudy, 
of  Nankin,  O.  They  own  a  farm  in  the  vicinity  of  Red- 
haw,  on  which  they  reside. 

7,  Martha  Estella  Davis,  the  youngest  of  the  family, 
was  born  November  6,  1844.  She  received  her  educa- 
tion in  the  pubHc  schools  of  Ashland,  and  became  quite 
proficient  in  music,  to  which  she  paid  special  attention. 
On  April  24,  1866,  she  was  married  to  Hamilton  C. 
Oldroyd.  They  lived  for  about  two  years  in  Galion, 
O.,  after  which  they  returned  to  Ashland,  where  Mr. 
Oldroyd  was  clerk  in  a  furniture  establishment.  He  was 
a  cabinet-maker.  Mrs.  Oldroyd  died  June  26,  1869, 
leaving  a  son,  named  Vanlear. 

Mr.  Oldroyd  had  been  a  soldier  in  the  Union  Army 
during  the  Civil  War.  He  died  October  26,  1897,  in 
Columbus,  O.,  where  he  was  employed  at  the  State  Insti- 
tution for  the  Blind. 

1.  Vanlear  Oldroyd  was  born  September  22,  1868. 
He  became  a  machinist,  and  married  Ida  May,  of  Shreve, 
O.,  on  Christmas  Day,  1892.  He  was  accidentally  shot, 
and  killed  almost  instantly,  in  Columbus,  O.,  his  home, 
by  a  non-union  man,  when  on  his  way  home  from  his 
work,  October  23,  1903. 

Vanlear  and  Ida  Oldroyd  had  four  children:  1.  Virgil, 
2.  Vivian  E.,  3.  Elverta  M.,  4.  Hamilton  C. 

(a)   Virgil  Oldroyd  was  born  February  9,  1894. 

(6)   Vivian  Estella  Oldroyd  was  born  May  9,  1896. 

(c)  Elverta  Martha  Oldroyd  was  born  October  3, 
1897. 

(d)  Hamilton  Charles  Oldroyd  was  born  February 
2,  1900. 

The  children  are  being  well  cared  for  in  the  Children's 
Home  of  the  Knights  of  Pythias,  at  Springfield,  O. 

C.  Margaret  Davis,  third  child  and  only  daughter 
of  Henry  and  Margaret  Davis,  was  born  in  Strasburg, 


Vn.    SAMUEL  223 

April  14,  1798,  and  became  the  wife  of  William  Rey- 
nolds, a  hatter,  of  Chambersburg,  May  27,  1828.  The 
marriage  took  place  in  Chambersburg,  probably  at  our 
house  —  the  Rev.  David  Denny  being  the  officiating 
minister.     The  "infair"  was  held  at  Mr.  Wm.  Means's. 

Margaret  became  the  mother  of  two  children:  John 
and  Hetty. 

1.  John  Reynolds  was  born  August  27,  1829,  and  was 
drowned  in  California  about  the  year  1865. 

2.  Hetty  Virginia  Reynolds  was  born  March  15, 
1831,  and  was  a  very  pretty  girl,  as  I  remember  her, 
and  had  become  a  fine-looking  woman,  as  well  as  a  good 
one,  when  I  last  saw  her  at  her  home  in  Chambersburg 
in  1898.  I  received  several  letters  from  her  in  reference 
to  this  Family  History,  in  which  she  was  much 
interested. 

Among  my  earliest  recollections  is  that  of  "Peggy" 
Davis  —  the  above-mentioned  Margaret.  Before  her 
marriage  she  was  one  of  our  family,  as  helper  to  my 
mother  in  the  old  home  on  Queen  Street,  and,  of  course, 
in  my  childhood  Peggy  was  an  important  personage  in 
my  daily  life. 

vn.   SAMUEL 

Samuel  Davis,  tenth  child  and  youngest  son  of 
William  and  Mary  Means  Davis,  was  born  in  Bucks 
County,  Pa.,  December  28,  1776.  He  was  between  seven 
and  eight  years  old  when  the  family  moved  to  Franklin 
County,  Pa.,  and  in  his  nineteenth  year  when  they  moved 
to  what  is  now  Crawford  County,  in  Northwestern  Penn- 
sylvania. He  subsequently  settled  on  a  clearing  in  what 
afterwards  became  Vernon  Township  (Union,  since  1867). 
His  farm  was  on  Wilson's  Run,  in  the  northern  part  of 


224  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

the  township.  There  he  spent  the  remainder  of  his  life. 
On  April  11,  1810,  he  married  Catherine  Haymaker. 
She  was  a  daughter  of  Jacob  Haymaker,  of  Franklin 
Mills,  now  Kent,  O.,  and  a  sister  of  Frederick  Haymaker, 
who  married  Rachel,  daughter  of  James  Davis.  After 
the  death  of  Rachel,  Catherine  carried  the  babe,  James 
Davis  Haymaker,  on  horseback,  from  Franklin  Mills, 
O.,  to  James  Davis's  home,  near  Meadville,  Pa.,  a  long 
and  lonely  ride  over  the  primitive  roads  and  through  the 
primeval  forests  of  those  early  days.  This  visit  in  the 
fall  of  1809  led  to  a  wedding  in  the  following  spring. 
Further  information  about  the  family  to  which  the  bride 
belonged  may  be  found  under  Rachel  in  the  chapter 
on  James. 

Samuel  Davis  was  one  of  the  few  who  held  slaves  in 
that  part  of  the  country,  and  he  had  but  one  —  a  negro 
woman  named  Vine.  So  says  George  S.  Davis,  a  descend- 
ant of  Samuel.  The  last-named  probably  inherited  her 
from  his  father;  for  the  early  court  records  of  Crawford 
County  contain  the  following  item,  among  others  of  a 
similar  character:  "William  Davis,  farmer  of  Mead 
Township,  Crawford  County,  returns  to  the  clerk  of  the 
Peace  of  said  county,  one  female  mulatto  child,  called 
Dinah,  born  on  the  25th  day  of  April  last,  of  his  negro 
woman  Vine.  Sworn  and  certificate  filed  January  30, 
1804." 

It  was  at  Samuel  Davis's  home  that  his  father,  William 
Davis,  spent  his  last  days,  and  from  which  he  passed 
away  from  earth.  Samuel  and  his  wife  were  members 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church.  Samuel  died  July  6,  1844, 
and  was  buried  in  Meadville  in  what  was  called  the  "Old 
Burying  Ground."  But  when  it  was  abandoned,  on  the 
laying  out  of  Park  Avenue,  his  remains  were  removed 
to  Mt.  Pleasant  Cemetery,  in  Union  Township. 

To  Samuel  and  Catherine  H.  Davis  were  born  nine 
children,  as  follows:   1.  Mary,  2.  William,  3.   Emily, 


Vn.    SAMUEL  225 

4.  Sarah,  5.  Eliza,  6.  John,  7.  Jacob  H.,  8.  Margaret, 
and  9.  Catherine. 

A.  Mary  Davis  was  born  December  23,  1810,  on 
Watson's  Run.  She  had  a  good  common-school  educa- 
tion, and  become  a  very  capable  and  eflBcient  woman. 
She  learned  the  art  of  weaving,  and  practised  it.  She  was 
also  a  school-teacher.  Later  she  was  married  to  Hiram 
Morris,  a  widower  with  a  large  family.  He  owned  a 
farm  in  East  Fairfield  Township,  six  miles  from  Mead- 
ville.  Mrs.  Dr.  Cotton,  now  of  German  town.  Pa.,  knew 
Mrs.  Morris,  and  speaks  of  her  capability  and  excellent 
qualities,  and  says  that  she  was  a  model  stepmother  to 
Mr.  Morris's  children.  "Aunt  Polly  Morris,"  as  she  was 
affectionately  called  by  her  friends,  bore  one  child  —  a 
daughter  named  Kate.  Mrs.  Morris  was  a  member  of 
the  Second  Presbyterian  Church  of  Meadville,  and  was 
buried  in  Greendale  Cemetery. 

1.  Kate  Davis  Morris  was  born  November  12,  1854, 
at  Shaw's  Landing,  Crawford  County,  Pa.  On  March 
2,  1876  she  was  married  to  John  W.  Anderson,  of 
Utica,  Venango  County,  Pa.  To  them  were  born  four 
children:  1.  Clara  G.,  2.  J.  Ralph,  3.  D.  Carlton,  4. 
Wayne  A.  L. 

1.  Clara  Gertrude  Anderson  was  born  February 
19,  1877,  at  Argyle,  Butler  County,  Pa.  Inheriting  from 
her  mother  a  taste  and  talent  for  music,  she  has  become 
a  fine  musician.  She  is  a  teacher  of  piano  and  violin 
music  in  Toledo,  O.,  where  Mrs.  Anderson,  Clara,  and 
Wayne  are  living.  It  is  said  that  Miss  Anderson  is  one 
of  the  best  piano  players  in  Toledo,  and,  added  my 
informant,  one  of  the  best  young  women  in  the 
city. 

2.  James  Ralph  Anderson  was  born  November  13, 
1878,  at  Utica,  Pa.     He  was  married  in  April,  1904,  to 


226  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

Florence  Foster,  of  Toledo.  He  is  a  driller  of  oil  wells, 
and  interested  also  in  the  automobile  business.  Their 
home  at  present  is  at  Oakland  City,  Ind.  I  have  heard 
that  he  is  a  model  man. 

3.  Dean  Carlton  Anderson  was  born  October  14, 
1887,  at  Allentown,  N.  Y.  He  is  an  automobile  machin- 
ist and  salesman,  in  the  service  of  an  automobile  com- 
pany of  Rochester,  N.  Y.  He  has  been  called  an  "ideal 
young  man." 

4.  Wayne  Almon  Leroy  Anderson  was  born  March 
24,  1893,  at  Woodville,  Sandusky  County,  O.  Before  he 
was  seventeen  he  was  timekeeper  and  order  clerk  in  the 
Overland  Automobile  Factory,  in  Toledo.  After  a  short 
time  he  was  wanted  as  assistant  chief  clerk  in  an  estab- 
lishment employing  thirty-five  hundred  men.  He  could 
not  be  spared  from  the  position  he  was  occupying,  but 
his  salary  was  raised. 

Here  was  one  of  our  cousins  left  to  struggle,  with  four 
children  depending  upon  her,  and  certainly  the  outcome 
has  been  greatly  to  her  credit.  Mrs.  Anderson  must 
have  inherited  all  her  mother's  good  qualities,  to  have 
raised  so  fine  a  family,  under  adverse  circumstances. 
She  is  worthy  of  the  admiration  and  honor  of  the  whole 
family  connection. 

B.  William  Davis,  second  child  and  eldest  son  of 
Samuel  Davis,  was  born  July  15,  1812,  on  the  farm  on 
Wilson's  Run.  He  had  a  common-school  education,  and 
a  Christian  training.  He  became  a  farmer,  and  married 
his  cousin,  Margaret  Kennedy  Davis,  daughter  of  John 
Davis  and  Mary  McGunnegle,  February  23,  1836.  She 
was  born  June  5,  1811.  Both  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  were 
members  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  Mr.  Davis 
was  an  intelligent  and  interesting  man,  of  gentle  manners, 
and  a  good  converser.  His  wife,  Margaret  Davis,  be- 
longed  to   that   excellent   family   which   included    Mrs. 


J.    HAYMAKER    DAVIS 

(Son  of  Samuel) 


GEORGE    STEWART    DAVIS 

{Son  of  Haymaker) 


WILLIAM    DAVIS 

(Son  of  Samuel) 


FRANK    K.    DAVIS 

(Son  of  William) 


Vn.    SAMUEL  227 

McFaden,  Mrs.  Horner,  and  Mrs.  Gibson.  She  was  a 
true  helpmeet  of  her  husband;  and  I  am  sorry  that  we 
do  not  know  more  of  the  wife  of  so  good  a  man  as  William 
Davis,  and  the  mother  of  such  a  man  as  Frank  Davis. 
I  have  not  a  doubt  that  she  was  a  very  superior  woman. 
Her  life,  however,  was  not  a  long  one.  She  died  October 
26,  1857,  when  she  was  only  forty-six. 

To  Mr.  and  Mrs.  William  Davis  were  born  eight  chil- 
dren: 1.  and  2.  twins,  George  M.  and  Samuel  M.,  3.  Wil- 
lie A.  M.,  4.  Mary  M.,  5.  Francis  K.,  6.  Eliza  C, 
7.  Jesse  W.  D.,  and  8.  Rosamond  G. 

On  the  breaking  out  of  the  War  for  the  Union,  William 
Davis,  then  in  his  fiftieth  year,  his  son  Frank,  aged  eigh- 
teen, Jacob  Haymaker  Davis,  brother  of  William,  and 
James  Davis  Gibson,  a  nephew,  all  volunteered  and 
joined  Company  I,  2d  Regiment,  Pennsylvania  Cavalry 
at  Connellsville,  Pa,  The  company  was  organized  by 
Capt.  R.  C.  Johnson,  It  was  reorganized  December  17, 
1863,  by  Capt.  M.  L.  Stone,  at  Bealton  Station,  Va. 
These  relations  went  through  the  War  in  the  cavalry 
service,  in  the  same  company  and  regiment.  The  2d 
Regiment  took  an  active  part  in  forty-two  engagements, 
including  Second  Bull  Run,  Gettysburg,  and  South 
Mountain.  Mr.  Gibson,  of  Dayton,  O.,  in  a  letter  to 
me,  says:  "Uncle  William  Davis  was  a  devout  and  happy 
Christian,  always  seeking  to  do  good  for  others.  He  was 
known  as  'Father  Davis,'  and  was  quite  a  missionary 
among  the  soldiers.  .  .  .  Uncle  William  and  his  children 
were  all  good  singers.  Wliile  we  were  in  winter  quarters 
in  front  of  Petersburg,  Va.,  he  conducted  a  prayer-meeting. 
Meetings  were  held  in  a  rude  hut,  made  of  logs,  and  cov- 
ered with  brush." 

At  the  close  of  the  war,  William  Davis  and  his  son 
Frank  went  to  Missouri,  and  located  on  a  farm  seven 
miles  from  Forkner's  Hill,  Dallas  County.  After  some 
years,  William  returned  to  Pennsylvania.     He  died  about 


228  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

1882  at  the  home  of  J.  Stewart  Davis,  who  had  married 
William's  sister  Ehza. 

Of  the  children  of  William  and  Margaret  Davis: 

1.  George  McGuire  Davis,  born  December  30,  1837, 
died  January  11,  1838. 

2.  Samuel  Means  Davis,  his  twin  brother,  died  Jan- 
uary 10,  1838. 

3.  Willie  Ann  Means  Davis,  born  December  24, 
1838,  died  December  5,  1846. 

4.  Mary  McGunnegle  Davis,  born  January  2,  1841, 
became  the  wife  of  Alfred  Flick,  a  farmer,  who  was 
born  in  1832.  When  I  discovered  the  whereabouts  of 
Mr,  and  Mrs.  Flick,  they  were  living  at  Kennard,  Mercer 
County,  Pa.  I  received  several  letters  from  Mrs.  Flick, 
who  is  very  much  interested  in  her  reminiscences  of  her 
kindred  who  have  passed  away,  and  in  our  effort  to  pre- 
serve their  memory  in  a  book.  Mr.  Flick  died  in  the 
winter  of  1910-11,  in  his  seventy-ninth  year.  Mrs.  Flick, 
since  his  death,  is  living  at  Hadley,  Mercer  County,  Pa. 

5.  Francis  Kennedy  Davis  was  born  January  8, 
1843.  We  have  already  seen  how,  at  the  outbreak  of 
the  Civil  War,  Frank  Davis,  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  vol- 
unteered and  joined  Company  I,  2d  Regiment,  Pennsyl- 
vania Cavalry,  and  went  through  the  war  in  the  same 
regiment  and  company.  Frank  was  made  sergeant  of 
Company  I.  In  one  of  the  many  battles  in  which  the 
2d  Regiment  of  cavalry  took  part,  Frank  was  taken 
prisoner,  and  sent  to  Libby  Prison.  While  there,  says 
Mr.  Gibson,  he  was  put  in  command  of  a  company  of 
Union  prisoners,  and  was  held  responsible  for  them. 
Being  a  good  singer,  and  a  teacher  of  vocal  music,  he 


Vn.    SAMUEL  229 

conducted  a  singing-school  in  the  prison,  and  thus  en- 
abled the  prisoners  to  while  away  many  lonely  days.  He 
was  exchanged  and  served  till  the  end  of  the  war.  While 
in  winter  quarters  before  Petersburg,  Va.,  he  took  part 
with  his  father  in  conducting  a  prayer-meeting. 

At  the  close  of  the  war  Mr.  Frank  Davis  went  to  Mis- 
souri with  his  father,  and  took  up  land  near  Forkner's 
Hill.  After  nine  years,  he  moved  to  Kansas,  where  he 
lived  until  his  death. 

On  December  25,  1866,  soon  after  settling  in  Missouri, 
he  married  IVIargaret  Jane  Rhodes,  of  Mercer  County, 
Pa.  She  was  the  daughter  of  Lewis  and  Sarah  Rhodes, 
and  was  born  January  18,  1844.  She  died  November 
28,  1877.  They  had  five  children:  1.  Florence  M., 
2.  William  S.,  3.  Ira  W.,  4.  and  5,  George  and  Sarah 
E.,  twins. 

William  Stewart,  born  June  23,  1869;  George  and 
Sarah  Estella,  born  July  11,  1875;  all  died  when  young. 

1.  Florence  May,  born  November  1,  1867,  and  Ira 
Wilhelm,  born  April  24,  1871,  remained  with  their  step- 
mother in  Kansas  five  years  after  their  father's  death. 
They  then  went  to  Pennsylvania  and  lived  with  their 
grandparents  in  Mercer  County. 

Mr.  Frank  Davis  was  an  earnest  and  active  member  of 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  a  Sunday-school  worker, 
and  a  master  of  vocal  music.  He  was  a  man  of  public 
spirit.  While  he  lived  in  Missouri,  he  was  a  candidate 
for  the  Legislature.  In  Kansas  he  was  a  Justice  of  the 
Peace  for  five  years.  He  was  an  ardent  politician,  but 
an  honest  and  patriotic  one.  Had  he  lived  he  would 
undoubtedly  have  become  knowTi  outside  of  his  own 
community,  for  no  man  was  held  in  higher  esteem  by 
his  fellow-citizens. 

On  July  28,  1881,  Mr.  Davis  married  a  second  wife  — 
Mrs.  Emily  Elizabeth  Norton.  She  was  born  in  Car- 
rollton,  O.     Her  parents  moved  to  Iowa.     After  her  mar- 


230  THE    DAVIS   FAMILY 

riage  to  Mr.  Norton  she  lived  in  Kansas,  where  Mr.  Davis 
became  acquainted  with  her.  Mr.  Norton  was  a  soldier, 
in  the  11th  Kansas  Regiment,  during  the  Civil  War. 
Mrs.  Norton  was  a  very  estimable  and  excellent  lady, 
and  would  have  been  a  good  wife  for  Mr.  Davis,  and  a 
good  mother  for  his  children,  had  he  lived.  But  his  death 
occurred  February  11,  1882.  His  two  children  remained 
in  the  care  of  Mrs.  Davis  for  a  number  of  years.  Her 
home  is  in  Hallo  well,  Cherokee  County,  Kan. 

Florence  May  Davis  was  an  interesting  girl  of  sterling 
qualities.  She  was  but  ten  years  of  age  when  her  mother 
died,  yet  with  some  help  from  her  grandfather,  William 
Davis,  she  filled  a  woman's  place  in  their  Kansas  home. 
Her  brother  says  she  was  a  mother,  as  well  as  a  sister,  to 
him.  She  had  but  a  moderate  education,  yet  had  win- 
ning ways,  and  a  bright  mind  and  ready  wit,  that  made 
her  a  leader.  May  was  about  nineteen  when  she  went 
to  her  grandparents  in  Pennsylvania.  There  she  spent 
the  remainder  of  her  short  life.  She  became  a  seamstress, 
and  by  her  cheerful  and  jovial  manner,  and  her  readiness 
to  lend  a  helping  hand  to  all  who  needed  it,  was  a  favorite 
with  all  who  knew  her.  Over-exertion,  it  is  believed, 
brought  on  the  illness  which  resulted  in  her  untimely 
death. 

May  joined  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  when  she 
was  about  ten  years  of  age,  and  was  a  faithful  member 
ever  afterward. 

3.  Ira  Wilhelm  Davis  is  a  resident  of  Mannington,  W. 
Va.  He  had  a  common-school  education,  then  spent 
three  years  at  Allegheny  College,  Meadville,  and  had 
some  thoughts  of  becoming  a  minister  of  the  gospel. 
But  circumstances  being  unfavorable,  he  went  to  Man- 
nington in  1897,  and  engaged  in  business.  He  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  firm  of  Boor  &  Davis,  wholesale  and  retail 
dealers  in  flour,  feed,  and  ice.  Being  an  upright  man, 
diligent  in  business  and  of  the  right  spirit,  he  is  esteemed 


Vn.    SAMUEL  231 

by  his  fellow-citizens  and  is  prospering  in  the  world.  On 
October  16, 1905,  he  married  ^Margaret  Virginl\  Startz- 
MAN.  They  are  members  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church.  In  national  politics  Mr.  Davis  has  been  what 
he  calls  a  "liberal  Republican."  I  suppose  that  at  this 
time  he  would  be  a  Republican  of  the  "insurgent"  order. 

6.  Eliza  C.  Davis,  sixth  child  and  third  daughter  of 
William  and  Margaret  Davis,  was  born  December  13, 
1844,  and  died  in  her  nineteenth  year,  July  11,  1863,  at 
Wilkinsburg,  Pa.,  and  was  buried  in  Beulah  churchyard. 

7.  Jesse  Wilson  Dick  Davis,  seventh  child  and  fourth 
son  of  William  and  Margaret  Davis,  was  born  February 
9,  1851,  and  is  now  living,  with  his  three  boys,  in  Tahoka, 
Lynn  County,  Tex.  He  was  at  one  time  a  successful 
mine  operator  in  Colorado,  and  is  now  an  extensive  land- 
owner and  real-estate  dealer.  In  a  letter,  dated  Decem- 
ber 22,  1908,  he  gives  me  the  following  sketch: 

"In  the  year  1876, 1  began  to  mine  as  a  helper,  in  one  of 
the  largest  mines  in  Colorado;  and  worked  for  two  years, 
when  I  was  promoted  to  be  an  underground  boss.  After 
serving  in  this  capacity  for  one  year,  I  was  made  second 
in  charge  of  the  mine.  After  filling  this  place  satisfac- 
torily for  two  years,  I  was  promoted  to  the  first  place, 
and  had  full  management  of  the  mine  till  1888.  When 
I  began  as  a  helper,  I  took  up  the  study  of  geology,  min- 
erals, and  especially  chemistry,  and  this  made  it  easy  for 
me  to  forge  my  way  to  the  front. 

"In  1881  I  was  married  to  Marie  J.  Boon,  a  highly 
educated  lady,  and  retired  from  mining  in  1888,  when 
silver  was  demonetized.  The  mine  was  shut  down  tiU 
the  year  1897. 

"My  wife  died  February  24,  1889,  after  which  I  came 
to  Texas,  and  married  again  March  29,  1890,  and  bought 
a  cotton  plantation.     The  lady  I  married  was  a  widow. 


232  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

We  lived  very  happily  for  fifteen  years,  when  a  question 
arose  between  us  which  caused  a  separation,  which  still 
exists.  A  suit  followed,  in  which  I  was  the  complainant, 
and,  after  a  long  contest,  I  won  in  every  count,  even  the 
children. 

"We  squandered  a  large  fortune  in  said  contest.  Since 
this  separation  I  am  living  on  the  Staked  Plains  in  Lynn 
County,  Tex.  I  am  now  preparing  to  put  a  large  tract 
of  four  hundred  acres  in  alfalfa.  I  am  also  beginning  to 
set  out  an  apple  orchard,  which  when  completed  will  con- 
tain twenty-four  thousand  trees  and  cover  four  hundred 
acres. 

"My  three  children  are  John  Carl  M.  Davis,  born 
January  22,  1891;  J.  W.  D.  Davis,  Jr.,  born  April  11, 
1892;  and  Lloyd  L.  Davis,  born  December  20,  1893." 

8.  Rosamond  G.  Davis,  eighth  child  and  fourth  daugh- 
ter of  William  and  Margaret  Davis,  was  born  December 
12,  1853,  married  to  James  Hopejoy  January  17,  1873, 
and  died,  probably  in  Arkansas,  February  2,  1875. 

C.  Emily  Davis,  third  child  and  second  daughter  of 
Samuel  and  Catherine  H.  Davis,  was  born  October  14, 
1814,  and  grew  up  on  the  farm  on  Wilson's  Run,  receiving 
a  common-school  education  and  a  good  home  training. 
On  February  3,  1848,  she  was  married  to  Stewart 
Smith,  a  farmer  and  owner  of  a  sawmill  in  Vernon 
Township.  They  had  three  sons:  Samuel,  John  D.,  and 
George  H. 

1.  Samuel  Smith,  born  December  18,  1848,  died  of 
diphtheria,  February  23,  1851. 

2.  John  Davis  Smith  was  born  March  8,  1850.  He 
became  a  carpenter,  and  followed  that  vocation  as  long 
as  he  lived.     In  1885  he  married  Jenny  M.  Stebbins, 


Vn.    SAMUEL  233 

who  was  born  April  28,  1862.  They  had  three  children: 
Faith  Anna,  born  February  4,  1889;  George  Stebbins, 
born  August  6,  1890;  and  Cora  Davis,  born  October  29, 
1893. 

Mr.  Smith  died  some  years  ago. 

When  I  visited  this  family  in  1908,  Mrs.  Smith  was  in 
charge  of  a  Fraternity  House  on  Highland  Avenue,  Mead- 
ville;  and  Faith  was  a  student  in  Allegheny  College. 
George  and  Cora  were  in  the  public  schools. 

3.  George  Haymaker  Smith  was  born  October  12, 
1851,  is  a  farmer  in  Union  Township,  has  remained  un- 
married, and  is  a  member  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church. 

D.  Sarah  Davis,  fourth  child  and  third  daughter  of 
Samuel  and  Catherine  H.  Davis,  was  born  February  5, 
1817,  and  died  in  July,  1824. 

E.  Eliza  Davis,  fifth  child  and  fourth  daughter  of 
Samuel  and  Catherine  H.  Davis,  was  born  December  15, 
1819,  and  died  April  10,  1902.  She  joined  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  at  the  age  of  thirteen.  WTien  she  was 
twenty-nine  she  became  the  second  wife  of  James  Stewart 
Davis.  Their  marriage  occurred  October  17,  1848.  i\Irs. 
Stewart  Davis  was  a  fine-looking  woman,  and  a  truly 
good  one,  as  may  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that  she  took 
into  her  home  different  relatives,  who,  in  their  old  age, 
were  left  without  children  of  their  own  to  care   for  them. 

Mr.  and  IVIrs.  Davis  had  three  children:  1.  Henry, 
born  January  13,  1850,  and  died  April  15,  1853;  2.  Wil- 
liam, born  August  11,  1855,  and  died  eleven  days  later; 
3.  jMary  Rosetta,  born  July  24,  1859.  On  New  Year's 
Day,   1885,  she  became  the  wife  of  Francis  Marion 

CUTSHALL. 

IVIr.  Cutshall,  son  of  Henry  and  Louisa  C,  was  born 


234  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

July  4,  1855,  and  died  March  1,  1889.  He  was  converted 
and  joined  the  church  at  Mt.  Pleasant  appointment  in 
1882.  He  was  pressed  into  the  service  at  once,  and  as 
steward  and  trustee  he  proved  himself  worthy  the  con- 
fidence of  his  brethren.  He  was  a  man  of  unblemished 
character.  The  high  esteem  in  which  he  was  held  was 
evident  from  the  large  congregation  attending  his  funeral 
services. 

Mrs.  Cutshall,  an  excellent  woman,  lives  on  the  old 
James  Davis  farm,  with  her  brother  James  Van  Home 
Davis. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Cutshall  had  two  children:  Minnie 
Davis  and  Bessie  Pearl. 

1.  Minnie  Davis  Cutshall  was  born  November  25, 
1885.  She  had  to  leave  the  public  school  before  com- 
pleting the  full  course,  on  account  of  impaired  health. 
After  regaining  her  health  she  learned  millinery  and 
dressmaking  in  Meadville.  She  worked  at  this  business 
for  several  seasons.  But  thinking  she  saw  something 
better,  on  July  26,  1907,  she  became  Mrs.  George  Leroy 
Beers,  of  Erie,  Pa.  He  was  born  December  1,  1884. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Beers  are  on  the  old  homestead  farm. 
They,  with  Mrs.  Cutshall,  are  members  of  the  Geneva 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 

Olive  Rosetta  Beers  was  born  March  9,  1909. 

2.  Bessie  Pearl  Cutshall  was  born  October  6,  1887. 
She  was  graduated  from  the  Geneva  High  School  with 
the  highest  honors.  She  then  took  a  full  course  at  the 
Meadville  Commercial  College,  graduating  in  June,  1906. 
On  October  10,  of  the  same  year  she  was  married  to  Willis 
TowNSEND  Benedict,  telegraph  operator  at  Conneaut 
Lake,  Crawford  County,  Pa.  They  have  a  pleasant  home 
at  Conneaut  Lake,  and  three  children  to  enliven  it: 
1.  Frank  Willis  Benedict,  born  July  6,  1907;  2.  James 
Davis  Benedict,  born  March  5,  1909;  and  3,  William 
Earl  Benedict,  born  November  6,  1910. 


JOHN    DAVIS 

(Son  of  Samuel) 


Vn.    SAMUEL  235 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Benedict  are  members  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church. 

F.  John  DA\^s,  sixth  child  and  second  son  of  Samuel 
and  C.  H,  Davis,  was  born  June  16,  1822,  and  died  in 
the  summer  of  1906,  being  eighty-four  years  of  age.  He 
was  a  farmer,  owning  a  farm  in  Union  To^vuship.  He 
married  M\ry  McIntyre,  July  4,  1852.  To  them  were 
born  six  children,  as  follows:  1.  Samuel,  2.  Emma,  3. 
Albert,  4.  Lucy  L.,  5,  M.  Catherine,  and  6.  William. 

Mr.  Davis  was  a  member  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,  while  Mrs.  Davis  was  a  Presbyterian. 

1.  Samuel  DA\as,  first  child  of  John  and  Mary  Da\as, 
was  born  in  1853.  He  became  an  engineer  on  the  Erie 
Railway.  On  March  14,  1889,  he  married  ]\L\ud  Hurl- 
but,  of  Kent,  O.,  who  was  born  March  16,  1867.  They 
had  a  son,  Hal  Hurlbut,  born  January  29,  1892.  Mr. 
Davis  was  a  member  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
and  Mrs.  Davis  of  the  Universalist.  WTien  only  forty, 
INIr.  Davis  was  killed  by  the  cars  near  Kent,  O.  It 
occurred  May  19,  1893. 

His  widow  has  been  married  to  Bradford  D.  Russell, 
a  train  dispatcher  on  the  Erie  Railroad.  Their  home  for 
several  years  was  in  Meadville.  They  are  now  (1911) 
living  on  his  farm  at  Orangeville,  O.,  where  Mr.  Russell 
has  charge  of  the  Erie  station  and  telegraph  office. 

Mrs.  Russell's  son,  Hal  Hurlbut  Davis,  is  now 
(1911)  fireman  on  the  Erie  Railroad,  making  his  home  at 
his  aunt,  Mrs.  Kelso's,  in  Kent. 

3.  Emma  Davis,  second  child  and  oldest  daughter  of 
John  and  Mary  Davis,  became  the  wife  of  James  Amos 
Bresee,  of  French  ancestry,  June  27,  1872.  Mr.  Bresee 
is  a  carpenter  in  the  service  of  the  Erie  Railway  Company. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal   Church. 


236  THE    DAVIS    FAMILY 

Mrs.  Bresee  belongs  to  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 
Their  home  is  in  Meadville.  Their  children  are:  1.  Ger- 
trude B.,  2.  Jessie,  3.  Alta  R.,  4.  Mary  C,  5.  John, 
and  6.  Charles. 

1.  Gertrude  Belle  Bresee  was  born  July  21,  1874, 
and  is  the  wife  of  Thomas  Kellam,  baggage-master  on 
the  Erie  Railway.  His  run  is  from  Kent,  O.,  to  Sala- 
manca, N.  Y.,  in  which  latter  place  they  reside.  They 
have  three  children:  1.  Carl  Robert,  who  was  born  in 
November,  1896,  and  died  September  11,  1897;  2.  Mah- 
LON  James,  born  May  14,  1900;  3.  Jessie  Marie,  born 
November  9,  1906.  Mrs.  Kellam  is  a  member  of  the 
Congregational  Church  of  Salamanca. 

2.  Jessie  Bresee  was  married  to  George  L.  Max- 
well, of  Meadville,  on  New  Year's  Day,  1900.  Both 
had  a  good  common-school  education,  and  Mr.  Maxwell 
was  graduated  from  the  Meadville  Commercial  College 
in  1900.  He  is  manager  of  the  manufacturing  depart- 
ment of  the  Keystone  View  Company. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Maxwell  are  members  of  the  Park  Avenue 
Congregational  Church,  of  which  Mr.  Maxwell  is  one  of 
the  trustees.  It  was  very  pleasant  to  have  Mr.  Maxwell 
say  in  a  letter  to  me,  speaking  of  Mrs.  Maxwell,  "All 
that  could  be  said  of  a  good  wife  could  be  said  about  her. 
She  is  a  'Davis,'  and  you  know  what  that  means."  Let 
the  dear  girls  that  are  growing  up  in  our  families  "sit 
up  and  make  a  note"  of  that  remark. 

3.  Alta  Roberta  Bresee  was  born  February  23, 
1878.  In  January,  1897,  she  became  the  wife  of  Elmer 
Frederick  Hausman,  of  Kent,  O.  He  is  yardmaster  of 
the  Erie  Railroad  Company  at  that  point.  Mrs.  Haus- 
man is  a  member  of  the  Disciples  Church,  while  Mr. 
Hausman  is  a  member  of  the  Lutheran.  They  have 
three  children:  1.  Hazel  Catherine,  born  June  7,  1898; 
2.  Russell  Elmer,  born  in  July,  1901;  and  3.  James 
Anthony,  born  March  4,  1910.     Their  pleasant  home,  in 


Vn.    SAMUEL  237 

the  residence  portion  of  Main  Street,  is  enlivened  and 
made  a  very  happy  one  by  these  bright  and  promising 
children. 

4.  ]\L\RY  Catharine  Bresee,  born  February  4,  1881, 
was  married  to  Fraxk  Lee  Ricketts,  August  2,  1905. 
He  was  a  machinist  in  the  service  of  the  Erie  Railroad 
Company.  Their  son  Clifton  Lee  Ricketts  was  born 
April  9,  1907.  !Mr.  Ricketts  was  killed  by  the  cars  at 
Kennedy,  N.  Y.,  October  3,  1907.  He  was  a  Presby- 
terian, while  his  widow  is  an  Episcopalian. 

5.  John  Bresee  married  Anna  Barnhart,  of  Phila- 
delphia, who  for  a  time  was  a  stenographer  in 
Meadville. 

6.  Charles  Bresee,  the  youngest  of  the  family,  is 
still  at  home. 

3.  Albert  Davis,  third  child  and  second  son  of  John 
and  Mary  Davis,  was  born  August  6,  1854.  He  married 
Jennie  Carman,  of  Meadville,  who  was  born  April  14, 
1853.  Her  mother,  still  living  in  Meadville  (1908),  is  a 
granddaughter  of  John  !Mead,  one  of  the  first  settlers 
(1787),  of  what  afterwards  became  Crawford  County, 
and  a  brother  of  Gen.  David  Mead,  a  conspicuous  figure 
in  the  annals  of  Meadville  and  French  Creek  Vallej'. 
Three  sons  were  born  to  Albert  and  Jennie  Davis:  1. 
Jasies  McIntyre,  born  June  18,  1878;  2.  Frank  Carman, 
bom  September  25,  1880;  and  3.  Charles,  born  April  7, 
1882.  The  three  brothers  are  in  business  together,  having 
a  large  grocery  store  on  North  Main  Street,  Meadville. 
They  are  meeting  with  good  success.  Their  character  is 
such  that,  with  their  pleasing  manners  and  address,  they 
are  worthy  of  the  prosperity  which  they  are  enjoying. 
Albert  Davis  was  an  engineer  on  the  Erie  Railroad.  He 
died  at  the  early  age  of  thirty-one.  IVIrs.  Davis  and  her 
sons  have  their  home  in  Meadville.  She  and  her  son 
Charles  are  members  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church. 


238  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

4.  Lucy  Roberta  Davis,  fourth  child  and  second 
daughter  of  John  and  Mary  Davis,  was  born  September 
30,  1856.  On  October  6,  1892,  she  was  wedded  to  Fred- 
erick James  Kelso.  Their  home  is  in  Kent,  O.,  Mr. 
Kelso  being  in  the  service  of  the  Wheeling  &  Lake  Erie 
Railway  Company.  They  have  one  daughter,  Mary  Eliz- 
abeth, a  bright  and  promising  girl,  studious,  and  with  a 
gift  for  music.  She  was  born  May  1,  1900.  Mrs.  Kelso 
is  a  member  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 

5.  Mary  Catherine  Davis,  fifth  child  and  third 
daughter  of  John  and  Mary  Davis,  became  the  wife  of 
Andrew  Appel,  who  is  in  the  service  of  the  Erie  Railway 
Company.  Their  home  is  on  Randolph  Street,  Mead- 
ville.     They  have  one  daughter,  named  Rilma. 

They  have  also  an  adopted  son,  named  Roy.  All  in  the 
family  are  members  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 

6.  William  Davis,  the  youngest  of  the  family  of  John 
and  Mary  Davis,  was  born  October  8,  1866.  He  attended 
the  common  schools,  and  took  a  business  course  in  the 
Meadville  Commercial  College.  He  married  Anna  Quick, 
who  was  born  in  Meadville,  October  5,  1870.  Her  father, 
A.  J.  Quick,  is  a  railroad  engineer,  and  has  run  for  forty- 
five  years  (1910)  without  an  accident.  William  Davis 
was  also  a  railroad  engineer.  But  his  course  was  a  brief 
one.  He  died  of  typhoid  fever  August  30,  1899.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Davis  had  one  daughter,  Ethel  Marilla,  born 
February  10,  1893,  who  was  graduated  in  1909  from  the 
Meadville  High  School.  She  is  studious  and  gifted  with 
musical  talent.  She  has  been  graduated  from  the  Bee- 
thoven School  of  Music.  The  home  of  Mrs.  Davis  and 
daughter  is  on  Mead  Avenue. 

G.  Jacob  Haymaker  Davis,  seventh  child  and  third 
son  of  Samuel  and  Catherine  H.  Davis,  was  born  at  the 


VII.    SAMUEL  239 

old  homestead,  June  13,  1825.  Early  in  the  Civil  War 
he  served  for  nine  months  in  Company  F,  168th  Penn- 
sylvania Infantry.  He  then  enlisted  in  Company  I,  2d 
Pennsylvania  Cavalry,  and  served  most  creditably  until 
the  close  of  the  War.  He  was  in  the  same  company  with 
his  brother  William,  his  nephew,  Frank  Davis,  and  his 
cousin,  James  Davis  Gibson.  At  the  close  of  the  War  he 
returned  to  his  farm  in  Union  Township.  He  was  a 
member  of  the  Mt.  Pleasant  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
and  a  very  consistent,  earnest  Christian.  Although  a 
farmer,  "he  spent  part  of  his  time  'doctoring'  diseases 
of  the  blood,  especially  cancers  and  malignant  tumors, 
curing  many  cases  which  had  been  given  up  by  physicians, 
as  hopeless."  He  is  described  as  being  like  his  brother 
William,  an  intelligent  man,  gentle  in  manner,  pleasing 
in  address,  and  disposed  to  be  helpful  to  those  around 
him.  On  May  16,  1867,  he  married  Mary  Ann  Smith, 
who  was  born  June  11,  1841,  in  Vernon  Township,  and 
died  December  8,  1871.  She  was  the  daughter  of  Stewart 
and  Mary  Trace  Smith,  and  was  a  member  of  the  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  Church.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis  had  two 
children:  1.  Cora  Emily,  born  November  11,  1868.  She 
died  just  two  years  later.     2.  George  S. 

1.  George  Stewart  Davis,  only  son  of  J.  Haymaker 
Davis  and  Mary  Ann  Smith,  his  wife,  was  born  in  Union 
Township,  Crawford  County,  Pa.,  June  25,  1870.  His 
mother  died  when  he  was  about  one  year  and  a  half 
old,  and  the  only  mother  he  ever  knew  was  his  father's 
sister,  Mrs.  Emily  Davis  Smith,  second  wife  of  Stewart 
Smith.  With  her  he  lived  until  he  was  eighteen  years 
old,  working  on  the  farm,  and  going  to  school  in  the 
winter.  He  was  graduated  from  Bryant  &  Stratton's 
Business  College,  in  the  class  of  1888.  He  then  took  a 
full  course  of  civil  engineering  in  Allegheny  College,  and 
was  graduated  with  the  class  of  1893. 


240  THE   DAVIS   FAMILY 

He  was  in  the  employ  of  the  Bessemer  &  Lake  Erie 
Railroad  Company,  then  of  the  Pennsylvania,  and  then 
of  the  Pittsburg  &  Western.  After  this  he  went  to 
Mexico,  where  he  was  with  the  Parral  &  Durango  Rail- 
road Company  for  more  than  eight  years.  In  1906  he 
was  appointed  chief  engineer  of  this  company. 

On  November  16,  1904,  in  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  he  married 
Mary  Coffman,  of  Clarksburg,  W.  Va.  She  was  the 
daughter  of  Capt.  John  W.  and  Sarah  McCann  Coffman, 
and  was  born  October  10,  1872.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Davis 
have  two  children:  Sarah  Davis,  born  in  Parral,  Chi- 
huahua, Mex.,  December  17, 1905;  and  Mary  Davis,  born 
in  El  Paso,  Tex.,  April  3,  1909. 

Mr.  G.  S.  Davis,  it  will  be  noticed,  is  a  gentleman  of 
education,  force,  fine  character,  and  wide  experience.  A 
lady  correspondent  writes,  "Mr.  George  Davis  is  a  large 
and  fine-looking  man." 

H.  Margaret  Davis  eighth  child,  and  fifth  daughter 
of  Samuel  and  Catherine  H.  Davis,  was  born  July  16, 
1827,  and  died  December  8,  1867.  She  spent  her  useful 
life,  and  died,  on  the  old  home  farm  in  Union  Township. 

/.  Catherine  Davis,  the  youngest  of  the  family,  and 
named  after  her  mother,  was  born  May  24,  1830,  and  was 
married  November  1,  1866,  to  William  McGuire,  who 
was  born  February  13,  1830.  They  were  both  members 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church.  Mrs.  McGuire  died  June 
16,  1901,  and  Mr.  McGuire  followed  her  February  19, 
1905.  They  both  died  in  the  hospitable  home  of  J. 
Stewart  and  Eliza  Davis,  and  were  buried  at  Harmans- 
burg. 


INDEX 


PART    I. —PERSONS    NAMED    DAVIS  • 


Aaron  S 191 

Albert 237 

Alexander 184 

Alexander  L 186 

Alexander  M 189 

Alice  D 124 

Alice  L 191 

Alices 121 

Anna  Horner 158 

Anna  Quick 238 

Annie  K 124 

Annie  M 99 

Ann  Keselring 206 

Arthur  L 217 

Arthur  0 210 

Bertha  Embich 208 

Bertous  E 208 

Blanche  Oudry 120 

Carl 172 

Carrie  B 208 

Cassie  Wood 194 

Catherine  M 204 

Catherine  Yocum 204 

Cecilia  Mercer 113 

Charles 237 

Charles  E 221 

Charles  H 208 

Charles  S 204 

Clara  E 189 

Clara  F 126 

Clarissa  Fulton 123 

Daniel  H 209 

Delia  Brawley 190 

Dexter 184 

Edith  M 114 

Edward  W 30 

Elba  E 218 

Eldorado  Wilson 217 

Eleanor  BushneH 52,  53 

Eleanor  Elliott 127,  127 

Eleanor  G 172 


Elizabeth 143 

Elizabeth  Cummings 62 

Elizabeth  R 121 

Eliza  C 171  and  231 

Eliza  Davis 59  and  233 

Emma  E 50 

Emma  Hall 126 

Esther  Woodruff 202 

Ethel  M 238 

Eugene  A 218 

Florence  M 230 

Frances  E 23 

Frances  1 160 

Frances  M 45 

Frances  Matthews 43 

Frances  Wolfe 29 

Francis  K 171  and  228 

Frank  C 237 

Frederick  H 160 

George  L 220 

George  M 148 

George  S 239 

Hal  H 235 

Hannah  Langdon 23 

Helen  M 208 

Helens 115 

Henry 205 

Henry  C 60 

Henry  F 125,  126 

Henry  H 159 

Henry  L 51,  53 

Hetty  V 209 

Horace  U 220 

Hugh 215 

Hugh  B 219 

Ida  Bowers 209 

Ida  Domer 208 

Hger 221 

Ira  W 230 

Isabella  Linsley 184 


242 


INDEX 


Jacob  H 238 

James 31,33,  144 

James  E 57 

James  H 184,  204 

James  J 42 

James  M 170 

James  R 191 

James  S 58,  189  and  233 

James  V 58,  209 

Jane  Wingate 62 

Jennie  Carman 237 

Jesse  W.  D 171  and  231,  172 

Joanna  0 170 

John 145,  184,  235 

John  C 57 

John  K 172 

John  L 29 

JohnP 119 

John  Q 24 

Jonathan  W 209 

Joseph 21,  30 

Joseph  H 202 

Josephine  A 221 

Justus  W 220 

Kennedy 159 

Leah  Scriba 205 

Lester  F 219 

Lloyd 172 

Lot 21 

Margaret 171,  240 

Margaret  H 126 

Margaret  Hurst 159 

Margaret  M 99 

Margaret  Startzman 231 

Margaret  Wylie 205 

Marguerite 172 

Marie  Boon 231 

Mary  Acheson 96 

Mary  Camahan 42 

Mary  Coffman 240 

Mary  E 221 

Mary  Ford 23 

Mary  H 128 

Mary  Irvin 190 

Mary  Mclntyre 235 

Mary  Proctor 112 

Mary  Smith 239 

Mary  Stoopes 191 

Mary  Tefft 56 

Mary  Wilson 194 


Matthews  E 45 

Maud  Hurlbut 235 

MeHssa  Wilson 47 

Mercy 22 

Miriam  M 115 

Morrow  H 217 

Myra  C 22 

Nancy  Edgar 144 

Patrick 183 

Paul  A 25 

Pauline  F 25 

Philip  P 120 

Rachel 45 

Rachel  Stewart 31 

Ralph 172 

Rebecca  P 115 

Robert 128 

Robert  B 210 

Robert  C 215 

Robert  S 61,  122,  126,  127 

Robert  K 210 

Robert  W 210 

Rodman  L 29 

Ruth 22 

Samuel 205,  223.  235 

Sara  Johnson 25 

Sara  Ladd 45 

Sarah 22 

Sarah  Kirby 172 

Sarah  Shoch 21 

Sarah  Stewart 89 

Sarah  Stockton 184 

Stewart  1 190 

Susan  Wilson 61 

Susan  Van  Home 58 

Sylvanus  C 221 

Thomas 22 

Thomas  E 209 

Thomas  K 110 

Thomas  T 220 

William, 

22,  32,  34,  89, 158, 184,  226.  238 

Willie  Webb 53 

William  E 208.  219 

William  H 205.  206 

William  S 90,  113,  114,  191,  208 

William  V 94 

William  W 55,  204 


INDEX 


243 


PART    II.  — PERSONS   NOT   NAMED    DAVIS 


Adamson,  Ethel  M 194 

Robert 194 

Anderson,  Clara  G 225 

Dean  C 226 

Ethan  A 25 

Flora  J 65 

Hannah  Davis 25 

James  R 225 

John 65 

Kate  Morris 225 

^          Maud  C 65 

Wayne  A.  L 226 

Appel,  Andrew 238 

Mary  Davis 238 

Babbitt,  Ada  Z 138 

Walter  A 138 

Bailey,  Catherine  McFaden ...  .  133 

George  H 157 

Harry  C 158,  158 

Henry  J 153,  157 

James  A 157 

Mary  Atwell 157 

Mary  Craft 158 

Baldwin,  Ernest  E 43 

Harriet  Davis 43 

Batman,  Frederick  H 137 

Pansy  Runner 137 

Bean,  Ellen  Work 66 

Frederic  J 66 

James  C 66 

Jennie 66 

John  S 66 

Mabel  E 66 

Beers,  George  L 234 

Minnie  Cutshall 234 

Benedict,  Bessie  Cutshall 234 

Willis  T 234 

Bl.\ir,  Andrew  J 68 

Anna  M 68 

Florence  Ellis 68 

Frank  C 68 

Helen  E 68 

Henry 67 

James  B 68 

Margaret  Mcllhany 68 

Martha  Smith 68 

Mary  E 67 

Mary  W 66 

Maud  E 68 

Melvina 68 

WiUiam  W 68 


BoswoRTH,  Bernice  R 78 

Carrie  Green 77 

Elwood  H 77 

Lorena 77 

Lyman  G 78 

Be.\dley,  Lemoine  D 80 

Mary  Green 79 

Norma  A 80 

Ora  D 79 

Paul  G 80 

Bresee,  Anna  Barnhart 237 

Charles 237 

Emma  Davis 235 

James  A 235 

John 237 

Bristowe,  Beverly 219 

Cuthbert 219 

John 219 

Lester 219 

Martha  Davis 219 

Burns,  Mary  Davis 25 

William  T 25 

Calvert,  Benjamin  C 26 

Clara  Davis 25 

Case,  Abbie  Haymaker 88 

Edmund  W 88 

Lona 88 

Chalmers,  Arthur  W 219 

Charles  S 219 

Nellie  Davis 219 

Harriet  M 219 

Rollo  H 219 

Cooke,  Eleanor  Davis 54 

M.  Llewellyn 54 

Coons,  Edward  L 218 

Harry  L 218 

Irene  Da^^s 218 

Lillie  1 218 

Lloyd  E 218 

Lowell  C 218 

Cooper,  Almond 66 

Nancy  Work 64 

OcillaWork 64 

Robert 64 

Cotton,  Aimee  Long 39 

Edward  S 39 

Henry  A 39 

Jean  Asay 38 

John  C 37 

Mary  Davis 37 

William  D 38 


S44 


INDEX 


Cramer,  Charlotte  Gamble 214 

George  W 214 

CuLLEN,  Frances  Davis 26 

William  A. .  .  . 26 

CuTSHALL,  Francis  M 233 

M.  Rosetta  Davis 233 

David,  Arthur  E 181 

Charles  S 181 

Eleanor  Sherk 181 

Eliza  Gibson 178 

Harry  G 181 

Hazel  Sprague 181 

Iva  Holman 182 

Martha  McKeIvy 181 

William  L 178,  180 

Da  VIES,  Helen  Wallace 117 

JohnM 117 

Deisher,  Dorothy 142 

Florence 141 

Grace 141 

Hannah  Van  Eman 141 

Maud 141 

WinfieldS 141 

Denny,  Mary  Davis 188 

Irene  B 189 

Roydon  B 189 

Walter  B 188 

Dunn,  Frances  Van  Eman 140 

Thomas 140 

Edmundson,  Eliza  Gamble 214 

Hezekiah 214 

Flick,  Alfred 228 

Mary  Davis 228 

Flood,  Anna  Davis 194 

Ned  Arden 195 

FooTE,  Carl  F 74 

Grace  Merrill 74 

France,  Cora  Haymaker 75 

Elmer  E 75 

Carl  H 75 

Marjory  B 75 

Fulton,  Cochran 133 

Elizabeth  Davis 133 

Melancthon  D 135 

Gamble,  Harriet  Fleagle 215 

Ida  Stinger 214 

Martha  Reed 214 

Mary  Davis 213 

Nancy  Creager 214 

Oliver  J 214 

Samuel  A 213,  215 

William  E 214 

Gardner,  Albert  L 108 

Alice  S 108 


Garland,  Alice  Bailey 156 

Alice  G 156 

Eliza  Bailey 157 

Henry  B 157 

John  W 157 

Robert 156 

Robert  M 157 

Gibson,  Albert  A 177 

Edwin  F 183 

Eleanor  Davis 172 

Ellen  H 182 

Erma  L 178 

Erma  Noble 178 

Frances  J 182 

Grace  E 176 

Henry  B 173 

James  A 178 

James  D 174 

James  H 172 

Lucy  Ziegler 174 

Mary  Harkins 177 

Sarah  Lewis 173 

William  D 183 

Gordon,  Edith  Bailey 158 

Eliza  Homer 167 

Franklin  M 168 

Robert  R 158 

Green,  Ann  Haymaker 77 

Clara  Haymaker 84 

D.  C 28 

Edgar 75 

Frances  Sexton 28 

George  B 84 

Gladys  Merrill 75 

Harriet  Reed 85 

Harry  B 79 

James  S 84 

John  A 218 

Josephine  Davis 218 

Kenneth  D 79 

Leonard  S 79 

Otis  H 79 

Rella  Burroughs 79 

Roy  Albert 218 

Stephen  H 77 

Walter  H 85 

Wilbur  S 80 

Grier,  John  D 108 

Hart,  Eliza  Davis 184 

Hassler,  Annie  Hart 47 

Eleanor  B 50 

Ellen  Davis 45 

Emma  F 48 

Ethel  Magaw 50 

Frank  P 47 

James  H 50 

James  P 45 


INDEX 


245 


'HASSVER-continued. 

Julia  Rogers 48 

Harriet  E -49 

William  D 49 

IL^usMAN,  Alta  Bresee 236 

Elmer  F 236 

Hazel  C 236 

Russell  E 236 

Haymaker,  Axvin  0 80 

Carlton  B 76 

Charles  A 81 

Crete  E 83 

Deborah  J 81 

Edward  C 76 

Elizabeth  0 88 

Franklin 73 

Franklin  P 82 

Frederick 69 

Frederick  E 88 

Gladys  L 76 

Hattie  E 81 

Homer  A 81 

James  A 82 

James  D 71 

Joel  W 83 

Lona 88 

Lotta  Carter 81 

Mary  Burlingame 73 

MaryOlin 72 

Mary  R 82 

Netta  Bortz 76 

Oscar  F 73 

Rachel  Davis 69 

Samantha  Wilson 83 

Sullivan  W 83 

William  J 87 

Zilba  M 83 

Henderson,  Edna  Pocock 132 

Homer  B 132 

Hess,  C.  T 215 

Hetty  Gamble 215 

Hetrick,  Anna  V 208 

Benjamin  F 207 

Bertous  D 207 

Edna  H 208 

Fanny  Ferrence 207 

Frank 207 

George  W 208 

Ida  V 208 

James  V 208 

LeRoy  F 207 

Mary  C 208 

Ruth  B 207 

William  H 207 

HoDKiNSON,  Catherine  B 157 

Franklin  C 157 

Katie  Bailey 157 


Horner,  George  K 169 

Georgia  D 164 

James 164 

John  D 164 

John 161,  162 

John  M 164 

Margaret  McFarland 164 

Mary  Davis 161 

Mary  G 165 

Matilda  G 165 

William  H 169 

HoPEJOY,  James 172 

Rosamond  Davis 172 

Hunter,  Anna  Cooper 66 

Clifford  R 66 

Johnston,  Agnes  Hannah 60 

Gertrude 60 

James 59 

John  C 60 

Margaret  Ann 60 

Mary  C 60 

Nancy  A 60 

Rachel  Davis 59 

Kellam,  Carl  R 236 

Gertrude  Bresee 236 

Mahlon  J 236 

Thomas 236 

Kelso,  Frederick  J 236 

Lucy  Davis 236 

Mary  E 238 

KiNCAiD,  Thomas 203 

Mary  Davis 203 

KiNDicE,  Abbie  Moore 85 

Almira  Haymaker 85 

Theodore  H 85 

William  J 85 

Kirk,  Burton  D 139 

Eva  Naylor 139 

Luella  M 138 

Mary  Davis 136 

Rufus 136 

Truman  H 139 

Langsdale,  Robert  G 25 

Myra  Davis 25 

Leberman,  Harold  D 58 

Harry  L 58 

Mary  Davis 58 

Limber,  Delia  Davis 187 

Evelyn  Belle 187 

John  C 187 

LiPPY,  Charles  H 206 

John  H 207 

Leah  Davis 206 

Mary  B 207 

William  D 207 


£46 


INDEX 


Mason,  Agnes  Scully 171 

Edwin  A 171 

Macfarren,  Mary  Reinohl 97 

Walter  W 97 

Mac  Stinger,  Elizabeth  Miller,  213 
J 213 

Maxwell,  George  L 236 

Jessie  Bresee 236 

May,  Emma  Powell 200 

Laurel  A 200 

McCuNTOcK,  Espy  D 194 

Marion 194 

Mary  Davis 194 

McFaden,  Eliza  Davis 148 

John  D 150 

John 148 

McGuiRE,  Catherine  Davis 240 

William 240 

McHenry,  Charles  W 151 

Lorena 152 

Mary  McFaden 150 

McIntosh,  Eleanor  McKelvy  ...  167 
W.  H 165 

McKelvy,  Eleanor  Horner 166 

James  P 167 

John  S 165,  167 

McKnight,  Alice  S 107 

Arthur  L 107 

Edgar  S 107 

Elizabeth  A 107 

Georges 107 

Joseph  B 106 

Kate  Senseny 105 

Mary  J.  A 108 

Mary  S 107 

McWhinney,  Eleanor  McKelvy,  166 

Marshall  D 166 

Ray 166 

Rose  McKelvy 166 

Merkel,  John  F 84 

Lois  M 84 

Mabel  Green 84 

Merrill,  Frank  A 74 

Ida  Haymaker 74 

Margaret  F 75 

Mary  B 75 

MiLBEE,  Charles  M 211 

Emma  Miller 211 

Milholland,  Anna  Fulton 134 

Alexander  S 135 

Miller,  Adolphus  A 213 

Blanche  Cowan 211 

Carl 213 

Caroline  E 212 

Charles  F 211 

Elizabeth  Davis 210 

George  A 210 

Lydia  Davis 213 


Miiji.ETt-continued. 

Minnie  L 212 

Paul 213 

Ruth  E 212 

Thomas 213 

Thomas  E 212 

William  Clarence 212 

Moore,  Anna  Rose 199 

Cora  Bennett 199 

Frederick  H 199 

Hugh  H 199 

Margaret  Powell 198 

Mary  M 199 

Thomas  P 198 

Morris,  Hiram 225 

Mary  Davis 225 

Morrison,  Lillian  M 152 

William  J 152 

Natjgle,  Gerald  E 213 

Harvey  E 213 

Mary  Miller 213 

Norton,  Claude  H 86 

Martha  Haymaker 86 

Maxwell  G 86 

McKendree  D 76 

Rachel  Haymaker 76 

Oldroyd,  Elverta  M 222 

Hamilton  C 222 

Ida  M 222 

Martha  Davis 222 

Vanlear 222 

Virgil 222 

Vivian 222 

Patton,  a.  B 203 

Ida  Davis 203 

Pegan,  Elvada  Steen 65 

Gertrude  Bell 65 

Hugh  A 65 

Mary  Work 65 

William  C 65 

Willoughby  C 65 

PococK,  Eugene  W 133 

Helen  E 133 

Laura  Semple 131 

Paul  C 133 

William  M 131 

Zillah  E 133 

Powell,  Edith 202 

Elizabeth 199 

Frank  H 201 

Isaac 197 

Jemima  Davis 197 

Lavina  Stenger 202 

Marion  1 201 


INDEX 


247 


FowEUi-contimted. 

Mary  1 198 

Mary  V 212 

Rosslene  Hovis 201 

Price,  John  E 86 

Mary  Norton 86 

Ptjrvis,  Emma  Davis 57 

Frank 57 

Harry 67 

Rapp,  Beulah  Lippy 206 

George 206 

Reinohl,  Albert  R 98 

Gertrude  L 98 

Lucy  Davis 97 

Walter  A 97 

Reisige,  Louis  A 166 

Mary  McKelvy 166 

Reynolds,  John 223 

Hetty  V 223 

Margaret  Davis 223 

William 223 

RiCKETTS,  Frank  L 237 

Mary  Bresee 237 

RosENBERRY,  Amos 215 

Caroline  Gamble 215 

Mary  Gamble 214 

Theodore 214 

Rudolph,  Ida  Davis 207 

John  A 207 

Runner,  Ada  Kirk 136 

Americus  J 136 

Edna 138 

Robert  K 137 

Russell,  Elizabeth 148 

Eliza  Davis 148 

George 148 

George  G 148 

John 148 

Mary 148 

Sanderson,  Doctor 167 

Elizabeth  McKelvy 167 

ScH^FEB,  Alfred  W 152 

Charlesetta  McHenry 152 

Schilling,  Mr 184 

Elizabeth  Davis 184 

Scully,  Genevieve 171 

Harmer  D 171 

James  D 171 

Mary  Davis 171 

Selden,  Anna  M 79 

Howard  G 78 

Luella  Green 78 

Oscar  G . .  .  . 78 

Semple,  Cynthia  May 131 

Eugene  P 131 

PhiloM 130 


SEMPhE-continued. 

Sarah  Davis 130 

Senseny,  Abraham  H 100 

Alexander  H 102 

Benjamin  R 102 

Edgar  N 105 

Jane  Davis 100 

Jeannette  L 104 

Rosalie  M 103 

William 102 

Sexton,  CuUen 28 

Hannah  Cullen 27 

John  C 27 

Seymour,  Herbert  W 44 

Isabelle  Davis 44 

Smith,  Cora 233 

Emily  Davis 232 

Jennie  Stebbins 232 

Faith 233 

George 233 

George  Haymaker 233 

Georgeanna  Davis 58 

John  D 232 

John  F 190 

Mary  Davis 190 

Stewart 232 

Speck,  John  E 212 

Margaret  Miller 212 

Stoyeb,  Augustus 64 

Freeda 65 

Swan,  Herbert  A 76 

Lilhe  Haymaker 75 

Teas,  Abbie  Haymaker 82 

Jean  Paul 82 

Tener,  Gertrude  Bailey 158 

Robert  W 158 

Trace,  Blanche 201 

Charles 201 

Florence  Powell 201 

Harry 201 

Helen 201 

Van  Eman,  Abram  W 141 

Anna  M 142 

Charles  E 142 

Isabel  Davis 139 

James  L 143 

Luna  Stout 141 

Martha  DefiFenbaugh 140 

Robert  C 140 

RufusM 142 

William  G 142 

William  J 139 

ViCKERS,  Frederick  H 86 

Martha  Haymaker 86 

Walker,  Harriet  Hoover 99 


248 


INDEX 


WAijK.EH-continued. 

Francis  V 99 

Katharine  Davia 99 

Marcus  A 99 

Wallace,  Benjamin  B 118 

James 116 

Janet  Davis 116 

Miriam  W 119 

Roberts 118 

William  R.D 119 

Waltrick,  Charles 207 

Inez  Hetrick 207 

Watson,  George 96 

Joanna  Davis 96 

Webb,  Anna  G.  Bosworth 78 

Vaughn 78 

Wehn,  Charles 212 

Laura  Miller 212 

Mary  R 212 

RuthD 212 

Weller,  Frederick  K 60 

Margaret  Johnston 60 

Welty,  Anna  Belle  Hassler 48 

James  A 48 

Per  Lee 48 

Walter  H 48 

White,  Alonzo 57 

Florence  Davis 57 


Woods,  Leah  Gamble 214 

Work,  Ella 65 

Francis  R 66 

Henry  S 69 

Jacob 69 

James  D 64 

James  L 65 

Jane 69 

John 65 

John  H 65,  69 

Joseph 69 

Margaret 69 

Margaret  McCance 65 

Martha  Ramsey 66 

Mary  Davis 63 

Mary  Johnston 69 

Mary  Weeder 66 

Ocilla 65 

Ocilla  Cochran 64 

Rachel  S 64 

William 64,  66 

Ziegler,  Henrietta 139 

Louise  T 138 

Mina  Kirk 138 

RufusKirk 139 

William  H 138 


